…..this one was a defender, I notice he’s now assistant manager at Bolton. Good on him. I assume he’d be yet another youngster Moyes gave a PL debut to.
…..this one was a defender, I notice he’s now assistant manager at Bolton. Good on him. I assume he’d be yet another youngster Moyes gave a PL debut to.
More to do with 20yrs ago, squads were smaller and once we had a few injuries, he had no choice but to use them, like when we had no strikers for season he had to use Vaughan and Anichebe. But how many actually became regulars under him. Osman was the only one. Rooney and Rodwell were sold on.
Different now squads are bigger, Dibling v palace was the first teenager he’d started in 5yrs
Zatara
Player Valuation: £100m
Didnt Osman only start getting into the 11 as a fixture at 23?
….certainly came through older than normal because he had a significant injury at a key stage. A little genius, the club made sure he never left despite his problems.
Yes he had a few bad injuries as a youngster and went on loan a couple of times
James Patrick
Player Valuation: £15m
Is there a list of teenagers currently regularly starting in the Premier League ?
I thought Rooney's first match was the one against Arsenal when he scored that cracker.
….so Moyes totally mishandled Baines and Osman. Baines played 348 games for us and became a full England international. Osman played 352 games for us and became a full England international.
You couldn’t write the script
You couldn’t write the script
Baines was an England international as won 30 caps and played in a major tournament. Osman got a couple at the end of his career, slightly different.….so Moyes totally mishandled Baines and Osman. Baines played 348 games for us and became a full England international. Osman played 352 games for us and became a full England international.
You couldn’t write the script
Who said he mishandled them?
Started in the first game that season v spurs
Marcus Kendall
Player Valuation: £20m
No that was his first goal
Don’t be silly
How is not knowing when a footballer played his 1st game and against whom, silly?
EFC_FRANCIS
Player Valuation: £40m
Everton weigh up next steps for prolific academy goalscorer who Liverpool wanted
Joe Thomas writes on the rise of Braiden Graham, the prolific academy forward once wanted by Liverpool and now on the radar of Everton’s first-team staff
They've paywalled it (lol) but the gist is he's not going to be an out and out centre forward and the club don't want to loan him in Jan. Tamen, Campbell, Welch, Dixon and Tyrer will be the players available for loan - some cutting edge premium journalism right there.
Ring master
Player Valuation: £90m
Never even knew they have ever done thatEverton weigh up next steps for prolific academy goalscorer who Liverpool wanted
Joe Thomas writes on the rise of Braiden Graham, the prolific academy forward once wanted by Liverpool and now on the radar of Everton’s first-team staffwww.liverpoolecho.co.uk
They've paywalled it (lol) but the gist is he's not going to be an out and out centre forward and the club don't want to loan him in Jan. Tamen, Campbell, Welch, Dixon and Tyrer will be the players available for loan - some cutting edge premium journalism right there.
- But here it isGoodison Park erupted into celebration twice last week as Everton’s youngsters pulled off statement wins.
First against PSV Eindhoven, then against Monaco, the club’s Under-21s twice came from behind to secure morale-boosting wins against illustrious opponents in the Premier League International Cup.
The victories were all the more impressive because they were achieved with several players stepping up age groups - in the 3-2 win over PSV all three goals were scored by 16-year-olds.
Unusually for Paul Tait’s team none of the five goals across four positive days came from the boot of top scorer Braiden Graham. His presence was still felt, however.
In stoppage time against Monaco on Friday night it was the young forward who carried the ball into the visitors’ box, the Northern Ireland youth international the catalyst for the chaos that led to George Morgan’s winner. Against PSV, a generous Graham allowed team-mate Shea Pita to take the winning spot kick after the winger drew the foul in front of the Gwladys Street.
It has been some 18 months for Graham. Signed from Linfield, where he became the youngest player to feature in the senior side, he was courted by Everton for some time.
A defining moment in the fledgling relationship came in May 2023, when Graham was in the stands at Goodison as a guest as Abdoulaye Doucoure sent the Grand Old Lady into orbit with the thunderous strike against Bournemouth that saved the Blues from relegation.
The reaction left an indelible impression on a teenager still buzzing from the high of his Linfield debut just weeks earlier at the age of 15 years and 137 days.
“The whole feeling around the club made me think it was perfect for me,” he later reflected. “I felt there was a good pathway at Everton for me. It just felt right. I was at Goodison Park on the final day of that season and Everton beat Bournemouth 1-0 to stay up. Watching that game, I was like, ‘I want to play here’.”
Graham settled well last season amid a cohort of players signed from other clubs as the Blues made the first strides towards rebuilding their youth sides after the academy suffered amid the ownership and financial chaos that characterised the final years of the Farhad Moshiri reign. He linked up with the likes of Justin Clarke, signed from AFC Wimbledon, and Ceiran Loney, who joined from Scottish side Partick.
It helped that he hit the ground running, scoring on his debut for the U18s in an opening day win over Stoke City. Thirteen goals and five assists would follow in his first campaign. When he signed his first professional deal with the club in November 2024 as he turned 17, he had six goals from his first six games for what was then Leighton Baines’ side.
Kevin Thelwell, director of football at the time, said: “We were delighted to bring Braiden to Everton in the summer, amid a lot of competition from other clubs for his signature, and it’s a move that has benefitted both him and the club.
“He’s been excellent so far this season. His goal record is very impressive, and he’s shown a great attitude for learning. Braiden’s game has developed working with our talented coaches, and he can see a clear pathway that offers him a great chance to progress at Everton.”
The competition referenced by Thelwell included interest from Liverpool, where Graham had a trial before agreeing to join their rivals. There was no shortage of satisfaction when the youngster scored in both of the U18s’ Merseyside derby wins last season.
Graham’s taste for a goal in a big game is one of several features of the early stages of his career. Described as a “lethal” finisher, his ruthlessness in front of goal has seen him at the forefront of landmark wins - both for Everton and the Northern Ireland U19s. It was his goal against Azerbaijan last month that sent his international side through to the next round of qualifying for the U19s Euros next summer.
Graham ended last season as he started it - in the goals. This time it was after being promoted to the U21s. In the season finale he bagged four in 66 minutes as Tait’s team signed off with a 5-4 win at Tottenham Hotspur.
Graham has been prolific again this season despite missing some games with an injury and being played on the left wing more, slightly out of position. His stature means there is an acceptance he will not be a traditional number nine, but his intelligence and clinical finishing have pointed to the potential for a career playing off a target man or in a central attacking midfield role.
Yet he is still the U21s’ top scorer, some achievement considering he is often facing players several years his senior. Four of his nine goals this season have come under Tait, the rest coming in cup cameos for the U18s, including a last-minute winner in the FA Youth Cup at Millwall recently.
For all his involvement in the youth setup there is interest in Graham from the senior coaching staff at Finch Farm. He travelled to Scotland for a pre-season camp with the first team in the summer and featured off the bench in some of the early friendlies. Graham has started to be introduced to first-team training more regularly and considerable time is spent on personal sessions concentrating on areas like his finishing.
The second half of the season often sees Premier League 2 teams depleted as older players seek Football League loans. While Everton will entertain moves for several players - including Will Tamen, Elijah Campbell, Roman Dixon and Reece Welch, Graham is not expected to move - the current thought process being the next six months could be significant in his development as more opportunities open up at Finch Farm.
Given the likes of Campbell and Welch have filled David Moyes’ bench in the Premier League this season, there could be a spot for him to gain matchday experience should they move out on loan.
The coming months will also allow Everton to consider their plans for Graham in more detail. His current deal is set to enter its final 18 months and the Blues already have a cautionary lesson from an academy player who has now gone onto become a prolific goalscorer for Northern Ireland. Isaac Price left on a free in the summer of 2023 and looks likely to become a Premier League midfielder given his ongoing success in the Championship with West Bromwich Albion.
For now, the focus is on supporting Graham as he continues to develop from inside the club. Speaking to the ECHO about his young forward, Tait summed up the situation well.
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