Chelsea can reclaim first place in the Barclays Premier League with victory at Goodison Park this evening and Frank Lampard has urged his teammates to make the most of the chance to take charge of the title race.

Manchester United have been the biggest beneficiaries of the past week, with all their rivals dropping points while Sir Alex Ferguson’s team were in Japan winning the Club World Cup, but a win over Everton would put Chelsea one point clear of Liverpool and eight points ahead of United, who will have two games in hand when they return.

Chelsea wasted the opportunity to go top eight days ago, drawing 1-1 at home to West Ham United after Liverpool had been held by Hull City the previous afternoon, and, with Rafael BenÍtez’s side again frustrated yesterday away to Arsenal, Lampard knows that Chelsea have the opportunity to seize control of the battle for the championship.

“We’re going to Everton and we have to win,” the England midfield player said. “We’ve had some good performances up there in the past and we’re confident. What we have to do now is push on. We can’t keep giving away chances to go top like we did against West Ham last week.”

Chelsea’s record against Everton is formidable – they have not been beaten in 20 encounters since November 2000 – and, with the home team still struggling to field a recognised forward, Lampard’s optimism seems well founded. Yakubu Ayegbeni and James Vaughan, who have Achilles tendon and knee injuries respectively, are out of David Moyes’s plans for the foreseeable future and, although Victor Anichebe and Louis Saha will undergo fitness tests today, the Everton manager is reluctant to risk either player.

Despite their injury problems, Everton have made steady progress in recent weeks, climbing to seventh, with Marouane Fellaini, their £15 million signing from Standard Liège in September, making an impact, but Steve Round, the Everton assistant manager, has complained that Fellaini’s poor disciplinary record – he has picked up eight yellow cards in his past 13 appearances – may stem from the midfield player’s towering physique and distinctive hairstyle. “He has said he is disappointed with how many bookings he has received,” Round said. “We have also put it down to the fact he is quite recognisable. I think referees maybe need to take a look at him and book him on merit, rather than because it’s big Fellaini.”

Everton (possible; 4-4-1-1): T Howard – P Neville, J Yobo, P Jagielka, J Lescott – M Arteta, S Castillo, M Fellaini, S Pienaar – L Osman – T Cahill.

Chelsea (possible; 4-1-4-1): P Cech – J Bosingwa, Alex, J Terry, A Cole – J O Mikel – J Cole, M Ballack, F Lampard, Deco – N Anelka.

Referee: P Dowd. Television: Live on Setanta Sports 1 from 7pm (kick-off 8pm).