Chelsea's 2-0 Premier League win away to Everton on Saturday was, on paper, exactly what Xabi Alonso's side needed: goals at either end of the second half, a clean sheet and a first victory at Everton's new Hill Dickinson Stadium. But the result came at a heavy personal cost. Emiliano Martinez, Chelsea's first-choice goalkeeper, broke his jaw in a second-half collision, was stretchered off after lengthy treatment and has since undergone successful surgery in hospital.
For a club sitting fourth on 13 points and building momentum, the loss of the 34-year-old Argentina international for the coming weeks is a significant test — and it arrives just as Chelsea face one of the most demanding stretches of their season.
The collision
The incident happened midway through the second half. Martinez came bravely to clear an inswinging free-kick and collided with Everton defender Jarrad Branthwaite — and, in the crowded penalty area, Thierno Barry as well. Play was stopped for around eight minutes while the goalkeeper received treatment on the pitch, before he was carried off on a stretcher and taken to hospital.
Speaking afterwards, Alonso revealed that Martinez had been concussed in addition to the jaw fracture — a combination that underlined the seriousness of the clash. Chelsea later confirmed the surgery had been "successful", a word the club chose carefully while declining to put a date on his return.
It was a cruel end to an afternoon in which Martinez had been excellent. Before the injury he had denied Merlin Rohl, held firm when Barry met a Jack Grealish cross with a close-range header, and at full stretch tipped a bouncing Grealish volley over the bar. He had also been penalised earlier for holding onto the ball too long — a reminder of the fine margins a goalkeeper walks between confidence and risk.
"The operation went well"
On Sunday, Martinez addressed supporters directly. Posting a photograph of himself in a hospital gown, he wrote: "Thanks to everyone for the messages. The operation went well. The most important thing is that we won, and kept a clean sheet. In a few weeks we'll be back."
The message struck the tone players reach for after a scare: gratitude first, then the insistence that the team's result mattered more than the injury. The "few weeks" estimate is Martinez's own rather than the club's — Chelsea have not confirmed a timeline, and outside reports have suggested he could be out until at least mid-November. Jaw fractures in goalkeepers, who take constant contact in crowded boxes, are not rushed; the added concussion will mean careful, protocol-led steps back.
The return question
For now, certainty is in short supply. Alonso and the club's medical staff will manage the recovery privately, and Martinez's history suggests he will not be hurried. What is clear is that Chelsea will be without their first-choice goalkeeper for a run of fixtures that could shape their autumn: the next three matches alone include Premier League meetings with Tottenham and Manchester United, with a Carabao Cup tie at Liverpool sandwiched between them.
It is the kind of sequence that tests squad depth — exactly the theme Alonso reached for when discussing the situation.
Penders: the 21-year-old steps up
Into the breach steps Mike Penders. The 21-year-old came on at Everton for his Premier League debut and is now expected to feature in at least the next three matches — the league games against Tottenham and Manchester United and the cup trip to Liverpool.
Stamford Bridge, the home stadium of Chelsea Football Club.
Ank Kumar / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Penders joined Chelsea from Belgian club Genk for £17 million in 2024 and has spent the past two seasons out on loan, including a spell at Strasbourg last term. He had already appeared in cup matches for Chelsea before Saturday, which is why Alonso spoke about him with such confidence afterwards — praising his bravery and personality in equal measure.
"Mike has personality. He's brave and we have full trust with him. He did well when he came on," Alonso said. "He played in the cup games and whenever he's needed. Like the other players, whenever they are needed they can perform. It's all about the squad — that all the players feel important and can have their moment whenever they are needed, and that's very positive."
It is a big ask for a young goalkeeper: three of the most scrutinised fixtures in English football, with no warm-up run. But Alonso's framing — trust, bravery, squad — was deliberate. The manager wants Penders to feel backed, not exposed.
The win itself
Amid the injury drama, the result deserves its due. Pedro Neto's goals, arriving right at the start and right at the end of the second half, secured a superb 2-0 victory that moved Chelsea onto 13 points and fourth place. The clean sheet — kept jointly by Martinez and his young replacement — had been elusive and was thoroughly earned.
Everton's new ground has not been an easy place to visit this season, and Chelsea's supporters will remember the afternoon for the victory as well as the sight of their goalkeeper leaving on a stretcher. Football, as ever, compressed joy and anxiety into 90 minutes.
Not that Martinez
A word of clarification for anyone doing a double take at the headline: this is Emiliano "Emi" Martinez, the Argentina No. 1 who won the World Cup in 2022 — not Lisandro Martinez, the Manchester United defender. Two different players, two different clubs, one shared surname. The goalkeeper wearing Chelsea's gloves this season is the Villa Park-era shot-stopper whose penalty heroics made him a national hero in Argentina, now facing several weeks of wired-shut recovery instead of clean sheets.
Verity will follow Martinez's recovery and Penders's run in goal across our sports coverage, from title-race drama to England's internationals, plus European football politics (UEFA) and the wider weekend sporting picture (cycling, Spanish football). The homepage has the latest, and our about page explains our approach.
