Following criticism from Chelsea fans in their West London derby against Fulham, manager Maresca relied on late goals from Tyrique George and Pedro Neto to secure a 2-1 victory, keeping their Champions League hopes alive last weekend.

This result extended Chelsea's unbeaten league run to four games, with comebacks from losing positions at halftime in their last two matches helping them earn four points.

Maresca was likely pleased to see his friend Pep Guardiola's Manchester City defeat Aston Villa on Tuesday, allowing Chelsea to stay in sixth place, just two points behind the top five.

However, Chelsea face a challenging remaining schedule among teams chasing Champions League spots, including upcoming matches against Everton, Liverpool, Newcastle United, Manchester United, and Nottingham Forest.

Attention might also turn to their Conference League semi-final against Djurgarden on Thursday, as Chelsea aim to end a four-year trophy drought, though the Premier League remains their main focus since it offers a Champions League place.

Fortunately for home fans, Chelsea next play a team with a poor record at Stamford Bridge, remaining unbeaten in 29 home league games against Everton since 1994—the longest such streak in the club's history.

Chelsea continued this streak with a 6-0 win over Everton last season, marking the Toffees' heaviest defeat in 20 years.

In one of Sean Dyche's last games as Everton manager, they drew 0-0 with Chelsea before Christmas, stopping Maresca's side from temporarily topping the Premier League, which feels distant now.

David Moyes has since taken charge and transformed Everton, quickly alleviating relegation fears in their final season at Goodison Park.

A nine-game unbeaten streak was followed by four games yielding just four points, though facing three of the league's top four teams made it tough regardless of form.

Manchester City recently beat Everton 2-0 at Goodison, with late goals from Nico O'Reilly and Mateo Kovacic, extending the Toffees' losing run to nine games against the Citizens at their soon-to-be-demolished stadium.

Everton's only win in eight games was a late victory at Nottingham Forest two weeks ago, with their defeats limited to matches against City and Liverpool, explaining their league-high 14 draws.

Only the bottom three teams have fewer wins than Everton's eight, but under Moyes, they have gained 21 points, seven more than the bottom three combined in the same period.

Recent losses for Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur keep Everton in 13th, leading the group just above the relegation zone but safely ahead of the bottom three.

Chelsea worry that right-back Malo Gusto may miss the rest of the season due to a muscular injury from the Fulham game, potentially joining Wesley Fofana on the sidelines.

Maresca is expected to field his strongest lineup despite the upcoming midweek semi-final, though young winger George, who impressed in the Conference League, might earn a league start after his impact at Craven Cottage.

Cole Palmer has gone 16 games without scoring, but he netted four against Everton last season, becoming the first player to do so in the 21st century, and remains a key starter.

Everton will miss key defender James Tarkowski for the season after his hamstring injury against Manchester City.

Michael Keane replaced him but had a poor second half, sparking calls for defensive changes that could see Jake O'Brien shift to center-back, with Nathan Patterson, Ashley Young, or Seamus Coleman at right-back.

Armando Broja underperformed against City and is ineligible here due to loan rules, so Beto will lead the attack with Dominic Calvert-Lewin still out.

Chelsea possible starting lineup:

Sanchez; James, Chalobah, Colwill, Cucurella; Enzo, Caicedo; George, Palmer, Neto; Jackson

Everton possible starting lineup:

Pickford; Patterson, O'Brien, Branthwaite, Mykolenko; Harrison, Gueye, Garner, Doucoure, Ndiaye; Beto