Everton: Elijah Campbell could be future Goodison Park star after making instant impact on loan
Elijah Campbell is showing early signs that he could prove to be a future star for Everton after making a loan move away from Goodison Park.
The Toffees confirmed on their website on 1 February that the 19-year-old had joined Fleetwood Town on deadline day on a temporary basis until the end of the season.
The English defender was thrown straight into the starting lineup for the League One side’s game against Port Vale on Saturday (3 February), where they secured a 3-0 victory.
Campbell joined the Blues when he was 13 and the club have earmarked him as a “highly-rated versatile prospect” due to his ability to play at centre-back or left-back.
He featured heavily for the U-21s last season, having made 23 appearances in Premier League 2, alongside playing in the EFL trophy for the youth side.
The teenager captained the young Toffees on several occasions this season, playing 13 times before making the switch to Fleetwood.
His performances for the U-21s caught the attention of Sean Dyche, with the defender invited to train with the first team regularly during this campaign.
Although he’s yet to make his senior debut for the club, he was named on the bench for the Blues’ 2-0 victory over Burnley on 16 December, handing him a taste of what it’s like to be in a Premier League dressing room on matchday.
The move to the Cod Army sees Campbell link up with former Premier League midfielder Charlie Adam, who has been tasked with keeping the 22nd-placed side in League Two this season.
Before the Everton academy product made his professional debut against Port Vale, Fleetwood had been without a victory since 11 November.
They then backed that up with another clean sheet and a victory on Tuesday (6 February) away against Bristol Rovers, where they came away with a 2-0 win.
After Campbell also played 90 minutes in the success at the Memorial Stadium, it’s clear to see that he’s having an extremely positive impact on his new side.
The centre-back has registered a 71 per cent pass accuracy in those games, which is reasonably high given that he’s been asked to play a fair few long balls forward, with just 48 per cent of those passes being won by a teammate [SofaScore].
Alongside winning 60 per cent of his duels in the air, he’s averaged seven clearances, one interception and recovered the ball once per game for his side.
It’s clear that Campbell is now showing some early promise to suggest that he could be a player to break into the first team on Merseyside in the coming years.
In other Everton news, Ally McCoist has shared a new Toffees relegation prediction live on talkSPORT.
For more Everton news, follow us on Facebook or join our brand new WhatsApp Channel for instant updates to be sent straight to your phone.