Chelsea chose Bonfire Night to ignite their fans’ title dreams with visitors Everton cast as Guy Fawkes.

Boss Antonio Conte stoked the flames from the dugout while his front three of Eden Hazard, Diego Costa and Pedro were firelighters-in-chief reducing the Toffees’ rear-guard which had conceded just eight goals all season prior to this massacre to ashes.

With Manchester City dropping points at home to Middlesbrough earlier in the day it means Conte’s men will be top for 24 hours at least.

There were pyrotechnics before kick-off and fireworks on it as Blues penned in their Merseyside visitors from the off.

Reward came on 18 minutes when Gareth Barry carelessly lost possession and Costa released Eden Hazard who cut inside two defenders and fired in off the far post.

Tough puff: Eden Hazard of Chelsea (L) and Ross Barkley of Everton (R)

Everton keeper Maarten Stekelenberg might feel he should have done better and within a minute he was beaten again.

Hazard began the move with a ball out to Pedro on the right and when he crossed Costa dummied for Marcos Alonso to slot his first goal for the Blues through the keeper’s legs.

With Everton conceding so much possession you’d have been forgiven for thinking they thought they were still playing in blue, Victor Moses was within inches of making it 3-0 when he thumped an effort against the post from Alonso’s cross.

Bryan Oviedo was hooked with 35 minutes played in favour of Kevin Mirallas.

Forward thinking: Pedro vies with Everton's Ramiro Funes Mori and Bryan Oviedo (R)

But the third duly arrived when Hazard’s corner from the right was flicked on by Nemanja Matic for an unmarked Costa to volley home. Whether the goal should have stood with David Luiz standing offside and in Stekelenburg’s line of vision is open to debate.

There should have been a fourth before the break when Pedro fed Costa who skinned Phil Jagielka to be one-on-one with Stekelenburg only to shoot wide.

Half-time changed little as Chelsea continued to lead Everton a merry dance, Hazard literally doing so when he skipped beyond three woeful challenges to fire the fourth inside the near post.

Skelenburg produced a wonder stop to deny Costa a second, but a fifth was inevitable and when the Brazilian-born frontman surged through the middle once more to feed Hazard, although his shot was parried it fell to Pedro who tapped in.

Luiz was within a whisker of a sixth with a volley tipped over by Stekenlenburg, but Chelsea had produced enough sparklers for one night.

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