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Darron Gibson and Arouna Kone could be set to return to the Everton squad for Saturday’s trip to West Ham – but South African Steven Pienaar is a “50-50″ doubt.
Striker Romelu Lukaku is also in line for a Blues debut following his deadline-day loan switch from Chelsea.
Midfielder Gibson has not featured since pre-season due to a troublesome knee problem, while Kone was absent for last weekend’s 1-0 win over Chelsea after picking up a knock to the same body part in training.
Pienaar is making a speedy recovery from the complaint which kept him out of the clash with Jose Mourinho’s side but faces a race against time to prove his fitness.
“I’m very happy with how Darron Gibson and Arouna Kone have progressed with their injuries and they could make the squad this weekend for the game,” said Everton manager Roberto Martinez on Thursday.
“Steven Pienaar is 50-50, as he has recovered very well but we need to be careful.
Darron Gibson could return but Antolin Alcaraz will again miss out.
“Romelu is ready to be available. He’s played a lot of football this season and he’s got used to his teammates in the past week and trained very well.
“Antolin Alcaraz (hamstring) is still recovering and won’t be available. But, other than that, everyone is fit and available for the game.”
Everton have a busy period ahead, with three games in the space of just nine days.
And Martinez knows this is an ideal time to have players returning to the fold.
“I was really pleased with the level on Saturday and now we have to use all our options in the squad and be as strong as we can,” he said. “We’ve got three games in a short space of time, so we need everyone ready and available.”
West Ham go into the game without a league win since the opening day of the season and currently sit one place behind Everton in 10th.
Sam Allardyce’s team have also failed to score in their previous three games and were involved in a goalless draw away at Southampton last time out.
Defender James Collins rues a near-miss during West Ham’s goalless draw at Southampton last weekend.
Everton head to London full of confidence after Steven Naismith’s header against Chelsea last weekend earned Martinez his first league win as manager.
The 1-0 victory saw the Toffees move into the top half of the table and maintain their unbeaten start to the Premier League season.
After four fixtures, the Blues and our rivals from across Stanley Park remain the only two unbeaten sides in the top flight.
Everton 2 West Ham United 0, 12 May 2013
The sides met on the penultimate weekend of last season in David Moyes’ final Goodison outing as Everton manager.
It proved to be a day to remember, with Kevin Mirallas netting both goals in a straightforward 2-0 win.
Kevin Mirallas nets in May’s 2-0 win over West Ham at Goodison Park.
Indeed, it only took five minutes for the Blues to take the lead as Mirallas applied a precise finish to round off a flowing move involving Steven Pienaar and Marouane Fellaini.
The Belgian then completed the scoring early in the second half as he collected a pass from Darron Gibson before beating goalkeeper Jussi Jaaskelainen with the aid of a deflection.
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