Young Everton midfielder Tom Davies says he hopes his performances for the England Under-21s will earn him more game time for his club. The academy product initially burst onto the scene three years ago and was hailed as a big prospect for club and country.
He scored a brilliant solo goal in Everton’s 4-0 thrashing of Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City in January 2017 and was named Everton’s Young Player of the Year at the end of that season.
However, in recent seasons, particularly under Marco Silva, his game time has been more limited, and he has only played 11 minutes’ worth of football this season – as a substitute in their opening day goalless draw away at Crystal Palace.
Davies still managed to earn a call-up to the England Under-21 squad from coach Aidy Boothroyd and played in the 3-2 win away at Turkey and the 2-0 win at home to Kosovo.
He signed a new long-term deal with the Toffees in April and Davies is hoping his international form will propel him to play more first-team matches. “I’m just doing my best and hopefully I’ve impressed him [Silva]. It’s up to him to see how it goes,” he said after the Kosovo game. “Everton stay in touch. I got a text after the Turkey game from one of the staff so it’s all good. It was positive they were watching and I’m glad they were.”
The 21-year-old was handed his senior debut by Roberto Martinez in April 2016 and the following season, he played 25 times in all competitions.
The 2017-18 campaign saw him establish himself as a regular in the team as he figured in 33 top-flight games.
However, last season Davies only played 16 times in the Premier League with his position still under scrutiny.
He will be hoping to get back into contention at the weekend as Everton travel to face Bournemouth on Sunday.
