Enzo Maresca watched on from the stands as his Chelsea side recorded a 1-0 win at home against Everton.
The Blues were boosted by the return of Romeo Lavia, who brought the absolute best out of his teammates as they bossed the first half.
Nicolas Jackson opened the scoring, ending his goal drought with a sweet strike from outside the box, while the likes of Noni Madueke and Pedro Neto were also positive in front of goal.
Everton grew in the second half, but couldn't find a way through and were limited to very few chances.
The win moves Chelsea fourth for the time being - with Newcastle and Nottingham Forest still to play this weekend. Everton will look to return to winning ways when they host Ipswich Town next Saturday.
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Story of the Match
Everton's recent run of fixtures had been tough, with recent meetings against Liverpool, Manchester City, Nottingham Forest and Arsenal before this game - all occupying the top spots in the league.
The Toffees have long struggled at Stamford Bridge, with a span of thirty five games without a win. David Moyes has also failed to win in his last nineteen games at Chelsea's home ground.
Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca continued to be put under pressure by the Chelsea fans, with a win desperately needed to remain in the race for Champions League football.
Cole Palmer had one of his best games in a Chelsea shirt to date in the repeat of this fixture last season, netting a first half hat trick and scoring from the spot in the second half as the Blues ran out 6-0 victors.
Maresca was wishing for a re-ignition of that form, and backed the midfielder to break his long standing goal drought in this game.
Romeo Lavia was a welcome return for the home side, slotting back into midfield alongside Enzo Fernandez. Moises Caicedo was shifted to right back, but often inverted during build-up.
Everton would look to target a shaky defence, with striker Beto showing physicality and hold-up play, putting goalkeeper Robert Sanchez under pressure in the early moments of the game.
For Chelsea, direct forward play was key, with quick passes delivered to their forward line, putting their opponents under pressure. They dealt with some early danger well - Nicolas Jackson found space in the middle, but took one too many touches and Everton were able to clear.
Chelsea were dominant in the opening twenty minutes, building in their 2-3-5 shape and creating threatening opportunities for their wide men. Pedro Neto was contributing regularly, with Everton left-back Vitaliy Mykolenko struggling to keep up with the Portuguese international.
Noni Madueke was also a threat, playing down the left hand side. He found room for a great strike, which was palmed away by Jordan Pickford.
Everton had zero shots on goal, but looked to target Chelsea in the air, creating crossing chances for the likes of Beto and Abdoulaye Doucoure.
The Blues had their opener just before the hour mark. Beto was disposessed by Trevoh Chalobah, who's pass found Nicolas Jackson. The Chelsea striker made no mistake, producing an excellent finish into the bottom left corner.
His reaction was telling as it ended a 13-game goal drought, and will have hopefully restored some confidence.
Everton struggled to break out of their own half, and went into the tunnel without a single shot on target. They were outnumbered in the midfield, with their forward players unable to offer much of a threat.
Illiman Ndiaye and Jack Harrison were largely isolated, which harmed the Toffees' ball progression. Moises Caicedo and Marc Cucurella did well to take the Everton wide midfielders out of the game.
Maresca will have been more than happy with how his team performed in the first half and will have asked his players to build on their slender 1-0 lead.
Carlos Alcaraz replaced Iliman Ndiaye at the beginning of the second half - with Moyes hoping for more possession in Chelsea's area of the pitch.
The Blues picked up where they left off - with Nicolas Jackson nearly doubling his goal tally after a risky backpass by Nathan Patterson. Mykolenko then headed clear after Pedro Neto popped up at the back post.
As the hour mark approached, both teams made changes - Reece James replaced Romeo Lavia, while David Moyes opted for a triple switch, clearly still frustrated by his team's performance.
Dwight McNeil and Ashley Young replaced Jack Harrison and Nathan Patterson. Beto was also replaced, but not before testing Sanchez with a powerful strike; Everton's best chance of the game, by far. Youssef Chermiti came on in the striker's place.
Everton were beginning to build momentum, and troubled their opponents with a string of chances. Chelsea were still searching for a two-goal cushion, with Jadon Sancho brought on in place of Madueke.
Jackson had the ball in the net after Pickford had spilled Cucurella's initial effort, but he was stood in an offside position, and the goal did not count.
Sanchez was once again called to action - this time getting a hand on a Dwight McNeil strike, steering Alcaraz's well worked cross towards goal.
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and Tyrique George were late substitutions as Chelsea saw out the remainder of the game.
Maresca will have wanted more goals, especially given his side's dominance, but will be happier with the three points as his side remain in contention for a top five finish.
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Player of the match - Noni Madueke
This was a much improved performance from Chelsea, in all aspects. We saw several players performing at their best, but Noni Madueke was a real standout for the Blues.
Whilst he didn't pop up on the scoresheet, the number of varied chances, shots, headers and forward play was incredibly positive.
He was also dilligent with his defensive duties, winning four out of seven ground duels.
Madueke was trialled down the left wing in this game, and after seeing the success of his experiment, Maresca could keep him there going forward.
