Everton: Thierry Small makes honest admission over 2021 Goodison Park exit
Thierry Small admits he wishes he left Everton on better terms following his move to Southampton in 2021.
The left-back remains the youngest player to feature for the Toffees at senior level at just 16 years and 176 days.
That FA Cup appearance against Sheffield Wednesday was his one and only for Everton, though, before departing Goodison Park later that year.
Small was offered a three-year professional deal by the club, amid interest at the time from some European heavyweights, but he turned it down.
Speaking to South London Press [24 March], Small - now at Charlton Athletic - said: "The way Everton was, I wish I could’ve left on better terms.
"The way it came out wasn’t completely true – there was a lot of false speculation about the move to Southampton.
"Going there was just a family decision to better my career. You have got to take risks - sometimes they pay off and sometimes they don’t, it’s just part of life.
"It was a good experience, in terms of being around the first-team environment at 17. I don’t think a lot of players would’ve been doing that at my age, so the experience of just that alone was unbelievable.
“It’s hard to adapt because I was new to first-team football. I went from being a scholar straight into a first-team environment in the Premier League. Transition-wise it was a little hard for me mentally to get used to that, it took a bit of a while.
"But then you have a few loans and develop, it’s a natural part of the game - you grow, not just as a player but also as a person."
What happened to Thierry Small?
Small appeared to have the world at his feet when replacing Jose Baxter as Everton's youngest ever senior player in January 2021.
With Lucas Digne and Niels Nkounkou ahead of him in the pecking order, the youngster decided to pack his bags and leave.
The fact he joined Southampton, rather than a club such as Bayern Munich who had also been linked, backs up what he said at the time.
He wanted to play regular football, even if he was still at a very young age, but he never made the cut at Southampton either.
Small does now at least appear to have found a more natural home for himself at Charlton Athletic, whom he joined in February, after loan spells with Port Vale and St Mirren.
It would be easy to write off Small and say he was silly to turn down Everton's proposal, but the decision has to be respected.
Still aged just 19, there is no reason why he cannot work his way back up the pyramid and belatedly make his Premier League bow one day.
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