Watch: Palmer makes Pickford pay as Chelsea thump Everton 6-0
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Cole Palmer was the star again for Chelsea, scoring four goals Monday to help the Blues cruise to a 6-0 win over Everton.
Weeks after scoring three to help beat Manchester United in dramatic fashion, Palmer was red-hot again at Stamford Bridge, recording a first-half hat-trick in less than 30 minutes of action.
Palmer completed the feat in the 29th minute after intercepting goalkeeper Jordan Pickford's errant pass and lobbing a shot from long range into the empty Everton net.
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Things got even worse for Everton shortly before halftime when Nicolas Jackson scored to make it 4-0 for the hosts.
Everton made three changes coming out of the break, but Sean Dyche's attempt to jumpstart the visitors wasn't enough.
Palmer made it 5-0 just after the hour mark, scoring a penalty to record his fourth goal of the evening. However, an apparent dispute over who would take the shot overshadowed the goal.
Noni Madueke won the penalty and looked eager to take it before Nicolas Jackson intervened in an apparent attempt to claim the shot. The dispute was eventually settled after Conor Gallagher got involved and Palmer - Chelsea's regular penalty taker - forcefully collected the ball before converting the penalty.
Blues academy graduate Alfie Gilchrist capped off the evening with his first goal for Chelsea.
The win moves ninth-place Chelsea to within one point of West Ham. Meanwhile, Everton are in 16th place, just two points above relegation after being docked a further two points last week for violating financial rules; the Toffees were docked six points earlier this season as well for similar breaches.
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