Football Echo: Royal Blue: Why I'm pleased to be seeing less of this man; (The one on the right, I mean).

Byline: SCOTT McLEOD: LOCKED OUT AFTER GETTING HOME LATE ON WEDNESDAY

BY this stage of last season, Everton had picked up as many injuries as points.

The tenth league game of the campaign at Aston Villa -- today's visitors -- provided the Blues with their tenth point.

Tomasz Radzinski's calf strain which ruled him out made him injury victim number ten.

His absence, albeit for just two matches, underlined a problem indicative of the club's season.

Last term kicked off with Richard Wright, Wayne Rooney and Kevin Campbell as walking wounded. They were soon followed by Francis Jeffers, Alan Stubbs and Radzinski.

With Steve Watson playing his way to a hernia problem and Thomas Gravesen starting to encounter nagging problems with his knee, it equated to a large chunk of Moyes' squad.

Twelve months on, the picture is dramatically different.

Only Li Tie has been missing for any decent length of time.

Gary Naysmith has had problems with his ankle and Rooney missed the opening weeks of the season with a broken foot before his transfer.

But two of the three haven't kicked a ball for the club this season, so their absences haven't harmed the continuity.

Of the players who would undeniably have been in Moyes' first-choice starting line-up before the season kicked off, Joseph Yobo is the only one who has been struck down by injury.

That was just for a week. But it was long enough for David Weir to get in and stay in.

Elsewhere, there has been a refreshing continuity.

Last season Moyes only managed to name an unchanged line-up twice. In 44 matches!

He couldn't get a pattern to his team selection, never mind his side's play. The club almost paid the ultimate price.

The squad is so thin right now it would only take three or four injuries to key players and the Blues would be badly exposed.

Even losing Lee Carsley for the next three matches has raised question marks.

The Blues have needed good luck with injuries like never before. And they have got it.

As a result, Moyes has already fielded the same XI in consecutive matches four times.

A year ago a growing list of players joined Baz Rathbone in the treatment room. Now he is as popular as Michael Moore at a Republican convention.

As long as the Blues remain in the top half of the table, I suspect that will be how it remains.

CAPTION(S):

WHO would have thought at the start of the season that the visit to Stamford Bridge would be a top of the table clash? But, to be fair, Jose Mourinho has done a sterling job since arriving in the summer and deserves all the success he has achieved.