Joe Anderson 54

 

Everton U18 centre-back Joe Anderson joined the club aged 15 in July 2016  following time spent in Liverpool’s academy.   Everton signed him to play as a left-sided midfielder, he broke through into the Under-18s during the 2017-18 season but ended up switching to playing as a centre-back the following season and has moved up the ranks from there. 

On the strength of this, Anderson signed a 2-year deal, his first professional contract, in July 2019, after providing a key role in this position for the Under-18s side.

“My game has come on a lot since I joined Everton. At every level you are challenged, there is healthy competition for places and it improves you, because every player is giving it everything.

“Now I want to have a solid pre-season and, when I get a chance to play, to show what I can do. I want to pick up where I left off last season.”

His season was cut short in March 2020 by the Coronavirus pandemic.

 “On the ball, I know I can play. I’ve worked hard on getting better defensively,” he told EvertonFC.com. “Unsy has helped me a lot in training on areas like my positional play and dealing with crosses.”

Everton offered Joe Anderson a 1-year contract extension in May 2021 amidst widespread transfer interest claimed for the centre-back.

The 20-year-old is in his 5th season, having begun to regularly train with Carlo Ancelotti’s first-team after having established himself as a mainstay in David Unsworth’s U23s. He sat out only four Premier League 2 fixtures in he 2020-21 season while playing the full game in 14 of his 19 appearances.

He further consolidated his position as first-choice defender and team captain with the Under-23s in what would become Unsworth's final season, doing enough to earn a 2-year contract extension in July 2022.

Solid displays at the heart of defence continued with the newly branded U21s in the 2022-23 season and, on the strength of them, he went to Australia with the club during the World Cup break, coming on for 15 minutes in the second half of the friendly against Western Sydney Wanderers. 

Approaching his 22nd birthday, Joe Anderson still had 18 months on his Everton contract but had not moved beyond training with the first team for a while under Ancelotti, Benitez and Lampard, and had made no senior appearances with the club. He completed a permanent move to Sunderland on Deadline Day in January 2023, signing a 3½-year deal for an undisclosed fee.

 

FactFile

Squad numbers	54
Position	Centre-back
Nationality	England
Born	Stalybridge
Date of birth	6 February 2001
Height	5'-5" (1.66 m)

Joined	3 July 2019
Joined from	Everton Academy
Signed under	Marco Silva
Transfer fee	No Fee
Contract duration	2 + 1 + 2 years
Contract expires	June 2024
Full debut	Under-23s only

Left Everton 31 January 2023 Destination Sunderland Transfer Fee [Undisclosed]

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