Everton manager Roberto Martinez has labelled the Toffees' Europa League round of 16 draw against Dynamo Kyiv “tough”, but before that he has his eyes firmly trained on weekend opponents Arsenal.
The Merseyside outfit defeated Swiss Super League side BSC Young Boys 7-2 across the two legs of their Europa League round of 32 tie. Everton striker Romelu Lukaku turned in a stellar showing and scored five goals across the two matches.
In the round of 16 draw, Martinez’s side have been drawn to play Ukrainian Premier League outfit Dynamo Kyiv. And the Spaniard feels that they will provide a tough challenge for his side.
“It is what we expected – a tough draw”, Martinez explained at a press conference today.
However, with the Europa League fixtures still some way off, the Everton boss has trained his eyes firmly on their next league fixture, against Arsenal.
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“But we leave it to the side for now and our focus is on Arsenal. We know Dynamo Kyiv will be tough opponents. We would have preferred to be away first, but that's not in our control.”
Arsenal will head into the match on the back of a 3-1 loss to Monaco in their Champions League round of 16 first leg, but Martinez believes that the Gunners’ performance will not be affected by their midweek loss.
“Arsenal will not let the midweek game affect them.
“We need to make sure we are fit and ready for an exciting game.”
Everton will look to collect all three points at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday to keep their hopes of pushing up towards the top six alive.
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