Tottenham Hotspur boss Antonio Conte has said he is not concerned about Dele Alli hurting his former team on Monday - and claims players tend to get worse when they are sold by him.
Everton landed the England international midfielder in January, as he had fallen out of favour at Spurs under managers Jose Mourinho, Nuno Espirito Santo and Conte.
It has been a tough spell for the 25-year-old, who was regarded as one of the best young players in world football in his early years at Spurs.
Alli is yet to start a game under new manager Frank Lampard as he builds his fitness in the Everton squad.
READ MORE: Everton's best attack leaves Frank Lampard with hard Demarai Gray or Dominic Calvert-Lewin call
READ MORE: Jonjoe Kenny outlines how he's reshaping his game after Everton masterclass
It's not expected that he will be in the XI on Monday either, with Donny van de Beek, Allan and Abdoulaye Doucoure impressing in a midfield trio last time out in the Premier League against Manchester City.
Even so, there will be some Spurs fans worried by their former favourite doing some damage on his first game in opposition colours. But Conte didn't appear too worried when he was asked about Alli ahead of the game, per the Evening Standard.
"I don’t remember a player that when he went away, came back with a great spirit of revenge," said the Italian. "Honestly, I don’t remember one.
"During my coaching, I always try to be honest with the players and give all the players the possibility to show me that they deserve to play. I don’t remember a player that had their revenge with me.
"What happens usually is that when players went away they went down, not up."
Conte was also asked why things didn't work out for Alli at Tottenham.
"It is difficult to say something about this, for sure he is still young and his career is in his hands," he said. "He is very young and he has all the time to take his career again. I really think so.
"[Dele joining Everton] was a good decision for the player and the club. This decision was the best for the player because in the last few years he wasn’t playing regularly and I think it was good for him to go to another environment to challenge for himself."
Everton head to north London looking to pull clear of relegation trouble, as a set of favourable results over the weekend means they have not yet been dragged into the bottom three.
However, the team has been in miserable form away from home this season, with their won win on the road giving them the worst away record in the Premier League.
*TAKE OART IN OUR LATEST EFC SURVEY
