Evatt retains self-belief Bloomfield Road, Blackpool Lancashire England

Blackpool central defender Ian Evatt is confident in his own ability as he prepares to tackle the Premier League's top names.

The 27-year-old faces trying to stop the likes of Wayne Rooney, Jermain Defoe and Didier Drogba after the unfancied Seasiders made it into the top-flight via the Championship play-offs.

Rather than being fazed, Evatt believes he must put players' reputations aside and instead focus on his own game as he prepares to return to training on Thursday.

And the defender insists Ian Holloway's side have the team spirit to mix it with the big-boys as they try to defy the odds and stay in the top-flight.

Evatt told the Blackpool Gazette: "People keep stopping me and ask how I'm sleeping at night, saying you've got to play against players like Rooney, Defoe and Drogba.

"But they've got two legs just the same as anyone else. If you go into a match judging people on their reputation then you're going to struggle.

"So what we need to do is go out on the pitch and play the way we have always played.

"I have no doubt that with the fantastic team spirit we've got, we'll do ourselves justice."

Source: www.skysports.com