Mauricio Pochettino feels Chelsea will face an Everton side galvanised and “with nothing to lose” following their 10-point deduction for financial breaches.
The Toffees overcome their sanction to move out of the relegation zone last night courtesy of a 3-0 thrashing of Newcastle and displayed a togetherness created by a feeling of injustice.
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Pochettino, whose team went down 2-1 at Manchester United on Wednesday night, is aware Sean Dyche’s men are in a good place despite their off-field woes.
Speaking ahead of Sunday’s trip to Goodison Park, he said: “It’s going to be really tough, but they were doing fantastic this season and that [10 point deduction] happened.
“I know Sean Dyche very well and I always admire him because of what he achieved with Burnley. Yes, it’s going to be tough because the feeling is that this [points deduction] is unfair and they were treated unfair. That is the feeling they have and of course when you feel like this, you feel freedom and have nothing to lose.
“They have good players and Sean is doing a great job and it’s going to be tough after last night. Massive victory for them against Newcastle, 3-0 and I think they’ll be motivated to face us but every game is different but we need to be ready to compete better than we have done in the last game.”
Dyche is renown for his direct brand of football but he has used it effectively over the years, most notably at Burnley, and Pochettino has called on his players to steel themselves for a tough battle on Merseyside.
He added: “It’s a different style, they can play in different ways.
“Dyche’s football is really aggressive, it’s brave. We’re going to find a team that’s going to press high and be aggressive and can build from the back and also play direct and it’s going to be interesting because they’re going to be a massive challenge for us.
“I think we need to give the players time, there’s a lot of players that have arrived. Now is not only to bring a player for eight years, it’s to work with them and try to put it all in context and create a dynamic.
“Now the most important thing is to create a platform where they find their place and feel they belong to this group and the team and the club.”
