Mata expeting tough Toffees

Chelsea’s Juan Mata is expecting a difficult encounter when his side take on Everton at Stamford Bridge on Saturday.

The Spaniard is wary of the Merseyside team, and believes their strength and height will make life difficult for the Blues.

“I think Everton is a difficult team to play against with strong players,” Mata told Chelsea’s official website.

“The strikers are tall, they have good players and we have to be prepared with the crosses, which will make things difficult for us.”

One of the Everton players Mata will have his eye on is Dutchman Royston Drenthe, who is on loan from Real Madrid after a frustrating four years in Spain.

The 24-year-old moved to the Bernabeu in 2007, just as Mata was on his way to Valencia, but struggled to make an impact and has moved to England to prove his worth.

Mata believes Drenthe will pose problems for Chelsea in Saturday’s clash.

“Drenthe is a good player, I know him. He is fast, has a good left foot, can score goals and supply crosses. He is a very good player,” Mata said.

“I think he is faster than me. There is that and my play is more inside, he is a winger, winger, winger.”

Mata only played in one of the games during the international break after remaining on the bench during Spain’s 3-1 victory over Scotland on Tuesday.

He believes that will leave him fresh for Everton, and revealed he shared a joke with team-mate Petr Cech, after scoring against him in Spain’s 2-0 win over the Czech Republic on Friday.

“For Saturday’s game it is better for me not to have played for Spain,” he said.

“There are 22 or 23 players in the Spain squad and I am happy to have played the first one and scored, and to be in that national team.”

“I spoke with Petr Cech afterwards and we had a joke about it. They lost the game but they won the next one, and now they have an opportunity to go to the European Championship through the play-offs.”