Deulofeu "very happy" to be back at Everton

, 1 July, 42comments  |  Jump to most recent
“Right from the start I wanted to come back”

Gerard Deulofeu has revealed the role Everton's fans played in drawing him back to Goodison Park as he officially joined the club a year after returning to Spain following a successful loan spell with the Blues.

The 21-year-old officially put pen to paper on the three-year contract that the club announced had been agreed last week and he told evertontv that coming back to where he feels so loved was all he wanted once the decision had been made to part ways with Barcelona.

He had other options, with half-a-dozen other teams rumoured to be interested and better personal terms reputedly on offer at West Ham United, but there was just one choice for a player whom so many Evertonians took to their hearts in the 2013-14 campaign.

"Of course there were other options," Deulofeu admitted, "but I always said right from the start that I wanted to come back to Everton — you can ask my agent and he will say the same."

"This is where I feel happy, this is where I feel like I am loved by the fans. The fans support me — they always send me messages, so this was where I wanted to come back to."

Deulofeu arrived at Everton two years ago as one of Roberto Martinez's first signings and his capture on loan was regarded as an impressive coup for the Blues.

Widely regarded as one of the most promising players in Europe based on his performances for Barcelona B and at the U20 World Cup for Spain in 2013, he appeared destined for stardom and his proposed season in the Premier League was intended to advance his development into a more rounded player.

His return to the Nou Camp, where he was initially promoted to the Blaugrana's senior side by then new manager Luis Enrique, did not result into first-team opportunities, though, and he was sent out on loan to Sevilla for the duration of last season.

He failed to convince Sevilla boss, Unai Emery, however and was marginalised during the second half of the season, including the Spanish club's triumphant Europa League campaign so it comes as no surprise that Deulofeu has sought the warm embrace on Merseyside for the next phase of his career.

"I had a great year when I was here last," the winger continued. "I really enjoyed my time here. I felt loved by the Evertonians and I was surrounded by really good teammates. I'm very happy to be back.

"The fans here are great and I felt really supported by them. Obviously I went back to Barcelona and then Sevilla but here, the fans live for their football.

"The Everton fans have been sending me messages all the time on social media, on Instagram and Twitter, asking me questions. If I have got 50 notifications on Twitter, 40 of them will be from Everton fans asking what is going on!

"Both myself and my girlfriend feel very supported by the fans and I just hope this year I can work really hard and give them back some of the happiness that they deserve."

 

Reader Comments (42)

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Dick Brady
1 Posted 01/07/2015 at 17:39:46
Exciting signing but heÂ’s got a lot to prove. I would say both Deulofeu and Barkley need to make next season a big one. Both players have bags of potential but need to start making it count.
Steve Chesters
2 Posted 01/07/2015 at 17:44:37
Welcome back, Gerard.
Eugene Ruane
3 Posted 01/07/2015 at 17:44:43
At my age, my response to a piece like this should be along the lines...

"Well good luck to the lad, itÂ’s good to have him back but letÂ’s not get too carried away. ThereÂ’s a lot of work ahead..."

So why do I actually feel more like saying...

Â’GOOD LAD GERARD!! ONE OF US, LAD!! COYB!!!Â’

Possibly because I never learn.

Brian Porter
4 Posted 01/07/2015 at 17:57:38
Well said, Gerard. Now I wish some of our more experienced highly paid pros would show similar feeling and commitment. YouÂ’ve made a great start towards building yourself a great rapport with the fans.

Long may you stay with us and good luck for the new season.

Drew Shortis
5 Posted 01/07/2015 at 17:53:13
Nice to see a player making a decision based on what feels right rather than what is best for his bank account. In the long term, making the move to Everton, where he is loved by the fans and trusted by the manager, will be wiser career move than pimping out his services to the highest bidder, only to end up as a bit part player when something shinier comes along.

I have a really good feeling about this move.

Ross Edwards
6 Posted 01/07/2015 at 18:05:20
Well said, Geri. A very exciting player who is absolutely delighted to be here.
Trevor Lynes
8 Posted 01/07/2015 at 18:01:13
I agree about the earlier comment regarding both he and Barkley. Both are very high on potential but neither have improved and last season for Barkley was really poor IMO compared to what was expected by the fans.

We now have three very young forwards in Barkley, Delboy and Lukaku who need a player with Â’nousÂ’ behind them. Osman is still good for about 45 minutes and so is Pienaar but we need a Â’realÂ’ top class playmaker who can start and finish matches. I was hoping for Nolito but would be happy with Mertens.

I really hope (and pray) that Mirallas stays too as supposedly we do not need to sell anyone. If a player wants to leave then so be it but unless that happens then we need to add to the squad and not just replace it one for one. If this club wants to live up to the club motto then we must get rid of players who are either long term injured or getting too old.

We should not let the likes of Coleman, Stones or Mirallas go as they are integral to the teams progress. We should be getting Gibson, McGeady and possibly Hibbert off the squad as they are not playing enough. Bring in extra players to replace those three and add Mertens to the squad if we cannot get Nolito.

Jamie Barlow
9 Posted 01/07/2015 at 18:13:11
I canÂ’t wait to see him play again. He was exciting to watch but also pissed me off in equal measure. Hopefully heÂ’s matured a bit, learnt more of his trade and will be back a better player.

Great to hear him speak in glowing terms of the fans. I have a look on Twitter now and again and he did still get loads of messages off Evertonians. So fair play to them for not letting him forget his time here.

Keith Glazzard
10 Posted 01/07/2015 at 18:20:43
Gerard Deulofeu, benvinguts!
Conor Skelly
11 Posted 01/07/2015 at 18:27:18
All the right noises. Just shows how the fans can make a difference. This guy just needs the arm around him and that’s what weÂ’ve given him.

IÂ’ve said it before but if he and Ross live up to their potential in the same team, weÂ’ll not only qualify for the Champions League, weÂ’ll make a big fucking noise in the process.

Jim Bennings
12 Posted 01/07/2015 at 18:51:31
Made up heÂ’s back but IÂ’m with the similar opinion of Dick BradyÂ’s first post.

HeÂ’s super talented but heÂ’s got a lot to live up to, itÂ’s all well and good having the talent but much like Barkley, you have to turn up and show it off in more games than not.

ItÂ’s a huge season for Barkley and Deulofeu together for much the same reasons and most of all because Evertonians expect!

David Chait
13 Posted 01/07/2015 at 19:03:50
And Lukaku, Conor!
Graham Mockford
14 Posted 01/07/2015 at 19:10:05
Gerard gave me the standout moment of 2013-14 when he pinged that equaliser against Arsenal.

IÂ’d been relegated to watching the game on the kitchen TV because the other half was watching the Corrie omnibus. My 14-year-old daughter entered just as I was doing my happy dance around the kitchen and gave me a look of sad incredulity. At that precise moment, I realised, whilst there is a breath in my body, I will always dance around the kitchen when we score.

So, just some more moments like that, Gerard and I will be a happy man.

Jon Ferguson
15 Posted 01/07/2015 at 19:16:30
If the manager teaches him to look up and occasionally pass to a man in the box then weÂ’ve got a world beater on our hands because IÂ’ve seen few players who can go past a man (or men) as easily as Deulofeu; it’s what happens next which he has to work on.
Conor Skelly
16 Posted 01/07/2015 at 19:09:52
And Lukaku indeed. We could be talking about three world class players here. Oh no, hold on, wait. Forgot to mention John Stones. ItÂ’s ifs and buts but they arenÂ’t exactly massive ifs. Hardly taking about Rodwell here. These guys are all way above that level. We need to keep four in the same side for the next three seasons. Now there is a big if.
Paul Jeronovich
17 Posted 01/07/2015 at 20:41:14
Love it. Welcome back son.
James Flynn
18 Posted 01/07/2015 at 20:37:26
Well, he came up thru the Barca system. So, he KNOWS pass and movement. He was raised in it.

Hopefully, heÂ’s gotten over himself and will apply all heÂ’s learned on the importance of TEAM playÂ’s allowance for displays of individual skills. And brings it all together to his and the ClubÂ’s benefit.

Geoffrey Risebrow
19 Posted 01/07/2015 at 20:48:48
Welcome back Gerard! I have total belief in him.
Jim Bennings
20 Posted 01/07/2015 at 21:06:42
Jon,

Gerry probably will "pass more to a man in the box" providing we actually get some friggin men in the box!

Too often last season we had one striker, Lukaku usually, playing out wide and attempting to cross the ball to who???

You could count on one hand the amount of times our midfielders got themselves in to scoring positions last season, when does Barkley ever get into a position where a tap-in may be available??

When do any of them apart from Leon Osman??

Ged Simpson
21 Posted 01/07/2015 at 21:27:23
What is not to love about this? Jesus — someone may say the manager did well. Crap season last year but I have a feeling the manager may do brill next season. He knows the club now; a good pre season and if we return to the form of the season he came – well, happy days. And the summer should always be a time for optimism or what is the point?
John Crawley
22 Posted 01/07/2015 at 21:36:14
Glad heÂ’s back, is there anything more exciting than a player running at pace at a defence and beating them. Hopefully Lukaku learns to make some runs to the far post to tap in those low hard-drilled crosses he makes.
Andy Walker
23 Posted 01/07/2015 at 21:50:27
"Right from the start I wanted to come back. Best fans in the league. Great club... blah blah blah." Nobody really believes this shite do they?

Having said that, I really rate the lad, good signing, just canÂ’t stand the sycophantic quotes.

Alan Humphreys
24 Posted 01/07/2015 at 22:01:22
Andy, Just need to see EtoÂ’oÂ’s goodbye letters to both us and Sampdoria fans to see what the modern footballers think they can get away with.

That said, he seemed to show Samp more love!

Brian Keenan
25 Posted 01/07/2015 at 22:15:59
Good signing?

I feel that we need another player on the other side who has the same speed.

Andy Crooks
26 Posted 01/07/2015 at 22:26:21
Quite right, Ged # 21. These are the days of hope. I was bursting blood vessels with rage at RobertoÂ’s efforts last season. Now, IÂ’m considering writing my annual nonsense that we have a good enough squad to finish top four. Is it only Everton that does this?
Fran Mitchell
27 Posted 01/07/2015 at 22:38:17
Here’s hoping he’s a great signing, but not so great that Barça take him back within 2 years.

A front 3 out of him, Mirallas, Lukaku, Pienaar and... still looking light. We need at least 2 more (that No 10 and an other).

Come on you blues.

Eddie Dunn
28 Posted 01/07/2015 at 22:56:31
Fingers crossed that the lad gets plenty of game-time, and gets off to a good start.

ItÂ’s a simple game, Gerard: beat your man and pop a cross in. Good luck.

Dave Abrahams
29 Posted 01/07/2015 at 22:59:20
Still a young man, only 21, in a foreign country, but wants to be here.

Welcome home, just do your best, you know you’re wanted by the majority of Everton fans. Make your mistakes, like every young player, but get us off our seats like the last time you were here and youÂ’ll be okay.

Good luck, good health and hopefully help us to a cup final and that will do for starters.

Paul Kelly
31 Posted 01/07/2015 at 23:36:13
Good to have him back. "Bum off seats" player and will give the opposition something to worry about.
Ed Shacklee
32 Posted 02/07/2015 at 01:03:06
I wish him all the best. His heart is in the right place, and his talent is undoubted. Sure, there are some rough edges, but he knows that. All the best!
Jason Davenport
33 Posted 02/07/2015 at 03:02:21
We have just signed four players (Delboy, Cleverley, Henen and Garbutt) who want to play for us and are young. I see the makings of a super team in the not too distant future. I just wish we could get a top class goalkeeper, as I donÂ’t rate Howard at all.
Jim Bennings
34 Posted 02/07/2015 at 07:18:11
Jason,

I like your enthusiasm but the makings of a super team?? Villa had Cleverley along with the likes of Grealish and Benteke and Delph, it hardly made them a super team.

We know nothing at all about Henen expect IÂ’m asking myself, if he was that good why are Olympiakos so quick to offload him, and where are the other big clubs pursuing his signature? ItÂ’s one thing doing it at reserve standard but he could go on loan and completely go under in a physically tough league, thatÂ’s when you really need to judge him.

Garbutt we are told is not ready to replace a 31-year-old Leighton Baines yet.

Deulofeu, as with Barkley, has a lot of potential but, as with so many players, the hard part is living up to this hype – last season, not many did, apart from Stones.

Steve Carse
35 Posted 02/07/2015 at 07:57:11
Jim, are you suggesting Baines is too old at 31? Fact is, Garbutt is not in the same league as Baines, and probably never will be.
Chris Leyland
36 Posted 02/07/2015 at 08:49:27
Jim, you say "We know nothing at all about Henen expect IÂ’m asking myself, if he was that good, why are Olympiakos so quick to offload him, and where are the other big clubs pursuing his signature?"

As I understand it, the reason Olympiakos were Â’so quick to offload himÂ’ is because Everton had an agreement with them that they bought him last season and loaned him straight to Everton with an option to buy him for more than they paid in the first place. This deal was put in place because Anderlecht wanted too much money when Everton tried to sign him last year but accepted a lower amount from a non-Premier League team. The outcome is that we get him cheaper than we would have had to pay Anderlecht and Olympiakos made a profit for doing very little.

Ross Edwards
37 Posted 02/07/2015 at 08:49:57
Super team? Well, weÂ’ll see but letÂ’s not overhype too much Jason.

Henen IÂ’ve never seen and he will probably never play for us,; Cleverley is an average player, 2nd rate crap in my opinion; Garbutt is forever going to be BainesÂ’s understudy until either he leaves or Martinez drops him; and Deulofeu is exciting but far from being the finished article by any means.

We talk about Martinez overhyping too much and putting pressure on the players, we donÂ’t need fans doing the same thing because if we expect too much early on, very soon, youÂ’ll get some on the playersÂ’ backs like last season.

Jim Bennings
38 Posted 02/07/2015 at 08:50:17
Steve,

Baines is 32 in December! HeÂ’s not old but his powers will begin to wane over the next 12-18 months.

How old was Ashley Cole when Chelsea flogged him off? He was only 32 because, for a left back much like Baines, whose strengths were bombing down the flank and becoming like an auxiliary winger, once age catches up with your legs, you find that a harder task.

31 is not old but I believe we will see this coming season if Baines can ever recapture the best of his game that was exceptionally good between 2009-2013.

Or will injuries (something else harder to shake off once you hit early 30s) prevent him flowing again?

Whether itÂ’s Garbutt or whoever, one day in the not too distant future, we will need to replace Leighton Baines.

Thomas Surgenor
39 Posted 02/07/2015 at 09:19:33
Off topic but continuing the trend of recent posts on this thread;

Garbutt is in no way a direct replacement for Baines. Please do not kid yourselves! Our style will need to change to accommodate him.

They can both hit free kicks but thatÂ’s where the comparison ends.

DonÂ’t get me wrong, I think itÂ’s GarbuttÂ’s time to shine and think he will be a quality player but he doesnÂ’t have the pace/direct running of Seamus or Baines.

If Baines is coming to an end, the thing I will miss most about him is his underlapping runs. He is the best full back in the world at the underlap. I just wish (as a fellow blue) he would take Luke to the side and teach him the underlap.

Luke is more of a Â’stay on the outside and crossÂ’ kinda guy, which may suit Lukaku better?

James Thornhill
40 Posted 02/07/2015 at 10:25:28
Deulofeu, Stones, Barkley, Lukaku!! Arguably four of the most promising young players in Europe, If they can reach there potential at Everton, hopefully in the next season or two, we could have one hell of a team... or 𧶀mil for BillÂ’s back pocket.
Paul Holmes
41 Posted 02/07/2015 at 14:14:37
Brian Oviedo will be our new left back this season; heÂ’s still young and a fit Oviedo will give any left back in the Premier League a run for their money!
Brin Williams
42 Posted 02/07/2015 at 14:39:42
Paul H – geepers! I had forgotten about him. Getting him back full time, fit and raring to go, will be like having a great new signing
Martin Mulrooney
43 Posted 02/07/2015 at 14:49:43
I am happy he is back but I am expecting to be frustrated as much as I am pleased with his performances this season, similar to when he was here last. Without a doubt though, I would always want to see his name on the teamsheet rather than Naismith, Barkley or Osman being played out of position; exactly the same as I always wanted Mirallas to start and to be pulled off if not performing, rather than being introduced for the last ten mins when chasing a goal.

It always leaves a feeling of frustration, when the Â’flairÂ’ players only get the last few minutes, even when you understand the tactical reason.

Tommy Webber
45 Posted 08/07/2015 at 18:41:09
WeÂ’ve had Lukaku opening his big mouth about wanting to go to a "big club like Chelsea" and weÂ’ve had Mirallas banging on about wanting to play in The Champions League like he was the only one in the team that did (bet that really ticked the other players off) .... So what a refreshing change it is to see the likes of Deulofeu (whoÂ’s from an even bigger team than Chelsea, if you can believe that) genuinely appreciating the the love heÂ’s been getting from Everton and giving her the respect due unlike some. Same goes for TC! These are the players we need at the club.

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