Chelsea’s lead won’t make Liverpool come unstuck against Toffees says Mane

Sadio Mane says Chelsea’s lead in the Premier League title race cannot distract Liverpool from tonight’s Merseyside derby.

Trips to Goodison Park are always occasions in their own right for the red half of the city and victory in the storied fixture is a cause for celebration regardless of how either side is faring.

But Jurgen Klopp’s side are genuine title challengers this season and know they cannot afford to slip too far short of Chelsea’s mark over the busy festive period.

Antonio Conte’s side racked up their 11th win in a row at Crystal Palace on Saturday and three points against the Toffees would still leave Liverpool six points off the pace.

Mane is happy to focus on the opponents at hand, though, allowing the bigger picture to take care of itself.

“I think we have a bit of distance to Chelsea, but we all know what can happen in football,” the Senegalese explained.

“For us, the most important thing is not to think about where they are, it’s to focus on ourselves and go game by game, and try to win the games, until the end of the season.

“I think in the Premier League everything is quite the same, it [Everton] is a tough game, but why not? I think with the quality we have we can beat every team in the league, so I don’t know why we can’t go there and win.”

Liverpool started a run of five matches in 19 days with a handsome 3-0 win at Middlesbrough and meetings with Stoke, Manchester City and Sunderland follow hot on the heels of the derby.

Mane is in his third season of English football and is ready for the rigours of the calendar. “It’s not easy but I think everybody’s used to doing it,” he said. “I think it’s no problem for us so everybody’s excited and looking forward to this time, I think we can do it.”

James Mccarthy is banking on Everton’s fans creating another memorable occasion at Goodison Park.

The 227th Merseyside derby is the last Premier League fixturebeforechristmas.the home fans need no encouragement to get themselves up for the game, but Mccarthy, pictured, has reminded them just how much their passion is appreciated after the raucous reaction to a surprise win over Arsenal last week. “The fans responded after a few tackles and Arsenal knew they were in a game,” he said. “It was a really great atmosphere and now we’re looking to the derby. The fans will come out in their numbers, as always, and within the squad we know how massive the game is. We look forward to it.

“Under the floodlights at Goodison you can see the atmosphere and it’s one we’re really excited about.”

Republic of Ireland midfielder Mccarthy, formerly of Hamilton Accies, added: “It’s definitely always a big game, it’s your rivals and you want to get one over them. When Monday comes, we’ll be ready.”