Tim Cahill throws down the gauntlet to Chelsea
Tim Cahill has hailed Guus Hiddink as a genius but insists Everton can overcome Chelsea and win the FA Cup.
The Toffees reached their first final since 1995 by beating Manchester United on penalties at Wembley yesterday, 24 hours after the Blues had seen off Arsenal in the other semi-final.
Australian midfielder Cahill played under Hiddink during the 2006 World Cup and the 29-year-old revealed his admiration for the temporary Chelsea boss.
"Guus Hiddink is a genius — that's the simple way of putting it," he said. "He is one of those managers that is always thinking two steps ahead and it seems to work before he has even done it.
"There was a lot of pressure with him taking that job but he seems to have taken it in his stride. For anyone who knows him, they know it's not a fluke.
"He is an exceptional manager. He knows exactly what he wants. It's not a fluke that he has always done well with every big club or international team he has been with."
Everton have already beaten Liverpool, Aston Villa and United in this season's competition and Cahill vowed his team-mates will not be daunted by facing Chelsea twice in six weeks, starting with Wednesday's League game at Stamford Bridge.
He said: "As a team, Chelsea have got that self belief. They play to the end so we know its going to be difficult but its not going to be as difficult as some of the games we have had so far. Its a big pitch, a big stadium and just another test of our character."
Didier Drogba will be one of the main threats to Everton and has admitted he owes his stunning form to not rushing his return from a knee injury last summer. He took his goal tally to nine from his last 11 games with the winner against Arsenal on Saturday.
The Ivory Coast international missed the whole of summer training and said: "I'm really happy that in July I took the right decision not to go to pre-season because I needed to rest, I needed to work well on my knee and my legs to come back strong. That was the sacrifice I did in the beginning of the season and it's paying dividends now."
