Many Evertonians call them ‘the future’ of our club, and why not? Seamus Coleman(25), James McCarthy (23), John Stones(20) and Ross Barkley (20) were 4 of our top performers last season and with an average age of just 22 there surely is much more to come from these 4 promising youngsters. Already with over 200 appearances between them they all played a big part in Evertons challenge for Champions League football last season. And if we manage to fend off offers from other clubs they will surely play a big part in our future challenges for, dare I say it, trophies?

First let’s start with Seamus Coleman, interest has been shown in him over the past few months from big teams such as United and Arsenal. Luckily for us, he hasn’t left and Martinez has managed to tie Seamus down to a new long term deal keeping at the club until 2019. Last season was, without doubt, his best season in an Everton shirt. He bagged 6 premier league goals on his way to becoming our player of the season and even earned himself a place in the PFA team of the year. Coleman is one of many players to have flourished under Roberto’s attacking style of play. Now that Coleman has signed his new deal we will look forward to seeing him progress more.
Now, let’s look at that powerhouse midfielder, James McCarthy.

McCarthy was one of 3 players signed in our late transfer rally last summer and it really was worth the wait. He was a rock in midfield last season and formed a great partnership with fellow midfielder, Gareth Barry. Many people were sceptical about his £13 million move to Goodison but that now appears to be a bargain. It was just a couple of weeks ago when we laughed off rumours that Tottenham were interested in him. McCarthy is known for the distance he covers, he runs all game, every game and that is just the kind of work rate that we need all of our players to have. He and Barry were crucial for us last season and they both made a huge contribution. Hopefully there is more of this to come from this menacing partnership.
It really was a brilliant breakthrough season for John Stones wasn’t it? He got his chance due to defensive injuries later on in the season and he really did take his chance. He had an amazing 2nd half of the season and showed he really is a top talent. Top Premier League strikers couldn’t get past him and his talent didn’t go unnoticed. After just half a season in the spotlight John was called up for Englands 30-man World Cup squad. An astonishing achievement for the boy who was playing Championship football just over a year and a half a go. There has also been a bit of interest in him from other clubs, Spurs and United. Those rumours were recently ended due to the defender signing a new deal at the club. We all look forward to seeing Stones progress in the coming years.
Ross Barkley. Wow.

Without doubt the best upcoming young English player. He was one of our best players last season without any shadow of a doubt. Ross doesn’t just score a normal goal does he? He scores brilliant goals. Swansea (A), Newcastle (A) and Man City (H) to name a few. His skill and and ability continues to amaze fans and pundits alike. With Ross being a life long Evertonain, we know he will give 110% every game. Now that we have toed Barkley down to a new long term deal, we could potentially have one of the worlds greatest players in a few years time. Barkley’s amazing running with the ball ability has made many people to compare him to Paul Gascoigne, a former Everton player himself. There has been many rumours of Barkley leaving to teams such as Man U, Man City and most ridiculously Liverpool? But these, as with Stones, were put to bed when Ross signed a new deal. Sadly, he has just been hit with a long term injury, but I am sure that the injury will just make him a stronger player when he comes back.
These four players are our future, and that is a nice thought to have.

Sam

follow me on twitter @Allez_Everton