Premier League preview: Everton v West Brom

West Brom expect to have a number of players back from injury in time for their trip to Goodison Park to face Everton on Saturday.

Graham Dorrans (hamstring), Jerome Thomas (hamstring), Chris Brunt (tonsillitis) and Martin Fulop (chicken pox) have all missed matches in recent weeks, but all four are in the frame to line up at Goodison Park.

Dorrans, in particular, will be a welcome return after eight weeks on the sidelines as Roy Hodgson tries to fill the hole left by the absence of the injured James Morrison.

“Graham has had to stop and start with bumps, bruises and knocks, so hopefully he will get an opportunity in the next eight games,” assistant head coach Keith Downing said.

“He had a slight hamstring strain but hopefully he will be back in training tomorrow, which will put him in the picture for Saturday.”

Thomas, Brunt and Fulop have all returned to training this week and are in line to play as West Brom look to snap a three-game winless run.

Hodgson’s side remain 11 points clear of the relegation zone, and while they appear safe, they would no doubt like to eliminate any chance of going down.

Everton return to their home ground on a high after beating Sunderland 2-0 at the Stadium of Light to set up an FA Cup semi-final showdown against Merseyside rivals Liverpool.

With the chance to reach their second FA Cup final in three years and the pressure of a Merseyside derby on them, the temptation may be for the Blues to ignore their league duties.

But defender Leighton Baines said that would not be the case.

“It’s a fantastic occasion. The fact that it’s against Liverpool makes it all the more special, but to get to a semi-final for us is great,” Baines said.

“It was a great incentive going into the match. Now we can start to look forward to it – obviously we’ve got other games coming up before that, so we’ll focus on them as well.”

Croatian striker Nikica Jelavic has made a massive impact at Goodison Park since arriving from Rangers in January, and has scored three goals in his last six appearances, including the opener against Sunderland.

Dutchman Royston Drenthe, Seamus Coleman and Jack Rodwell all missed Tuesday’s FA Cup tie, but could be in line to return this week.