Everton players will feel targeted over points deduction and it gives Sean Dyche a big problem to overcome

Former Everton striker Kevin Campbell is concerned about the effect Everton’s latest points deduction will have on the team.

The club was deducted two points for another breach of the Premier League’s profit and sustainability rules.

This adds to their previous deduction of six points, which the Toffees appealed against 10, to further fuel a miserable campaign for Dyche, whose side are now just two points from the relegation zone.

Speaking on the Hawksbee and Jacobs Show on talkSPORT moments after the news broke, Campbell believes it could be difficult for Dyche to get his players ready for battle again.

“The funny thing is that when you’re a footballer, when you do business, you don’t expect points to be taken away from you.

“So we have to get up and go again. This is going to be the hardest thing for Sean Dyche.”

When Campbell was asked whether or not Everton could galvanize, the former Toffees striker said: “Well, it certainly did earlier (in the season).

“Those 10 points galvanized the whole club, to be honest. But look, we’re at the end of the season now.

“Two points isn’t the end of the world, but they’re going to have to appeal because that win against Burnley on Saturday is now a draw.

“As a player you feel targeted and you won’t be happy because it seems like your club is being victimized.”

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Everton were penalized with a 10-point deduction on November 17 earlier this season, the heaviest punishment handed out by the Premier League in its history.

This saw the Toffees fall to the bottom of the table, but it had a huge effect on team spirit.

Dyche has overseen a brilliant run of four successive Premier League wins – recovering the 10 lost points and adding a few more with 12 in total.

The 52-year-old manager summed it up well in December after a 2-0 win over Burnley: “Some people took some of that away and said, ‘You have to do this again.’ That’s what we did.

That series included a 2-0 win at Goodison Park against Chelsea and a 3-0 win over Newcastle at home as well, in front of roaring crowds.

As well as the encouragement from their side, there have been strong protests against the Premier League and this will likely only grow in light of their latest sanction.

For a club like Everton, where supporters are hugely important to their identity, a positive takeaway is that the overall spirit will be rock solid for the remainder of the season.