Everton player rating vs Chelsea: seven score 8/10 but 'little wasteful' 6/10 in 2-0 victory - gallery

Everton battled to a 2-0 victory over Chelsea at Goodison Park to march further clear of the Premier League relegation zone.

Second-half goals from Abdoulaye Doucoure and Lewis Dobbin means the Toffees are now four points clear of the bottom three with Luton Town losing to Manchester City. Had Sean Dyche's side not been hit with a 10-point deduction for being guilty of breaching financial rules, they would sit 10th in the table - and juast three points outside the European spot - as they continue to build momentum.

Everton keeper Jordan Pickford was forced into an early save when he kept out Enzo Fernandez's low drive in the third minute. Then on 14 minutes, Cole Palmer tried his luck from outside of the area but Pickford was again equal to the effort.

In the 25th minute, the Blues mustered their first chance when Jack Harrison's volley on the spin didn't go too far wide of the target. Both sides were forced into substitutions before the break, with Everton's Ashley Young and Chelsea's Reece James limping off injured.

Everton started the second half brightly, with Dwight McNeil forcing a good save out of Chelsea keeper Robert Sanchez. The Blues would keep up the pressure and got their reward in the 54th minute. McNeil broke with venom down the left flank and slid a through ball into Dominic Calvert-Lewin. The striker's shot was well kept out by Sanchez but the ball rebounded to Doucoure, who kept his composure to slot home.

Everton soaked up pressure after that but the Londoners failed to create any clear-cut opportunities. Then in stoppage-time, Dobbin bagged his first senior goal for the Toffees when the ball fell to him on the edge of the box and he lashed home. That sent Goodison into raptures, with three successive league victories achieved for the first time since February 2021. Here's how we rated the Everton players.