Everton midfielder Diniyar Bilyaletdinov, who made the switch to Merseyside from Lokomotiv Moscow in the summer, is still coming to terms with the Premier League.

The Russia international claims the mental aspect of the English game is the most challenging.

"The mileage is probably the same, but the speed is different," he told The Independent.

"You need more concentration and attention. Every game is a hard game. It's fast. Not exactly like being in a washing machine, but something along those lines."

Bilyaletdinov will have to deal with the passion of an English derby himself when Everton host arch-rivals Liverpool at Goodison Park on Sunday.

The 24-year-old says he has already been made well aware of how important the contest is.

"There are fans who come to watch us train and they tell me," he added.

"In Moscow nobody spoke about the game in the weeks before whereas here they are talking about this game the whole year around."