England international Cole Palmer showed his importance to Chelsea as he found the back of the net to help the Blues regain their struggling form in a 2-0 win over Everton at Stamford Bridge.
Palmer was left out of the squad in midweek’s defeat to Atalanta due to an ongoing groin injury, but he remained fit enough to start against David Moyes’s in-form Everton side and made an impact from the start.
In the 21st minute, a sharp pass from Maro Gusto left Everton wide open and Palmer took advantage of it, firing a magnificent shot past Jordan Pickford to give Chelsea the lead.
It was a real tonic for Chelsea, who were winless in their last three Premier League games as their season threatened to be derailed ahead of the Christmas period, but Maresca’s side were bitter.
After a very good game for Everton, with James Tarkowski heading wide and Jack Grealish having his shot blocked from a narrow angle by goalkeeper Robert Sanchez, Gusto set off a sharp counter-attack for the hosts and they went into half-time in the lead.
Chelsea continued to dominate after the break, but Maresca was not willing to take any chances with Palmer’s fitness and sent him off just before the end.
Everton had a chance to surpass Chelsea with another win, as Grealish waved down his line to meet Carlos Alcaraz’s superb cross, while Pickford had to be on top of the game to deny Reece James’ vital free-kick.
However, goals scored in the first half by the returning Palmer and Gusto were enough to get Chelsea back on winning ways and move them up to fourth in the Premier League standings.
More to come…
