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Liverpool Echo

Sport

Joe Thomas

Everton starlet with 'metrics through the roof' is pushing for the first team

Isaac Price Everton Frank Lampard Paul Tait U21s Arsenal Ashley Cole Celtic EPL Tom Cannon

Paul Tait has found Isaac Price's metrics have "gone through the roof" as the young midfielder is rewarded for his hard work to improve.

The Everton Under-21s boss is one of a host of coaches impressed by Price's development this season. Frank Lampard and Ashley Cole are among his fans - particularly after his performances for the senior side in Australia last month. The 19-year-old returned from Down Under to perform for the U21s and was in the side that produced a stoppage time comeback against Mansfield Town's senior side in the Papa John's Trophy.

For Tait, Price's self-belief is one of his starlet's main attributes but he has little doubt what his recent progress is down to. He explained: "Hard work. Definitely hard work - and probably a little bit of maturing."

Price rose to prominence with his standout performances against Celtic and Western Sydney Wanderers as Everton took part in the Sydney Super Cup last month. While Lampard insisted Price had worked hard enough to deserve minutes, the injury to Tom Davies the day before the Celtic game paved the way for him to start. By the second half he was the only recognised central midfielder on the pitch for the Blues as Anthony Gordon and Dwight McNeil were forced to operate alongside him after Abdoulaye Doucoure's injury. Despite this, Price never looked out of his depth and was later described by Lampard as the best player on the pitch.

He excelled again in the 5-1 hammering of Western Sydney Wanderers, after which Lampard said: "I thought Isaac was great. He's had a great trip. He has matured a lot and he has deserved to play because of the way he has trained and the way he has played for the Under-21s, so he's thrown himself into the equation for the first team now."

Price was one of several from the U21s to impress in Australia and then seek out Tait upon touching down in the UK to ask about preparations for the Mansfield tie. Held at Goodison Park, it was a coveted opportunity to play under the lights at the historic ground. While the U21s struggled to exert control over the game after conceding an early goal they found a way to win through stoppage time goals from Liam Higgins and Tom Cannon. They now face Lincoln City in the last 16 on Tuesday night.

The trophy has represented another opportunity for Price and the likes of Cannon and Stanley Mills to test themselves against senior players. Price earned his Premier League debut against Arsenal in the final game of last season but then endured a testing summer. He has found form in the U21s this season - and goals, scoring against Manchester City and Arsenal among others. Tait put that success down to hard work that has helped him make significant strides in recent months, explaining: "He's making more passes than he has ever made, he has had more touches than he has ever made, he's making more forward passes, he's making more runs into the box, he's covering more distance, he's covering more distance quicker - so all his metrics have gone through the roof."

Price was on the scoresheet again last week in the Premier League Cup win over Colchester United. It was another boost for a player whose confidence was enhanced by his success in Australia. Tait said: "He's got huge belief in his own ability and he will think he should be playing for the first team every week. He's got that belief, and I think you need that, especially when you are playing in the middle of the pitch and you have got to take the ball in those positions. I think he shows confidence and belief all the time he plays."

Price was delighted with the opportunities he got in Australia and is keen to continue his development. Speaking with the ECHO in the CommBank Stadium after the win over Western Sydney Wanderers, he reflected on his recent progress and said: "That [making his debut against Arsenal] is a dream come true for any player coming up in an academy, that's what you want to do, you want to play in the Premier League. Once I had that, that is when I had a little bit of 'come on now, kick on, get some more'. I went away in pre-season, it didn't quite happen for me there but I feel like I have come back now. That's the way football is. Sometimes you are doing really well, sometimes you are not doing well, it is how you manage the lows and the highs, so don't get too high when it is going well and don't get too low when it is not going well."

Football appears to be going well for Price, who joined Everton aged seven - though his current contract ends next summer. Lampard is not the only first team coach of the belief he is closing in on first team football. Ashley Cole recently told the ECHO: "I feel it's important that he gets game time because in training he trains like he plays - he's 100% invested in what he does. I think [against Celtic] he showed a lot of quality and personality with the ball. Without the ball he's willing to run and press and so to see those characteristics in him in a game against Champions League opposition I think: 'Yeah, he's definitely one for the future'. It's important that he still develops and learns and keeps playing games with his own age.

"But, of course, there will be a time when we feel he's ready. And we have a big squad at the moment. So it's difficult to maybe give him minutes and give him an opportunity in the Premier League because we have got experienced players that are also fighting for that opportunity. But, ultimately, if he keeps training and showing that personality... I was a youngster, I trained with the first team and then I got an opportunity and it's about being ready, mentally and physically. And he showed that. He’s not too far away in my personal opinion."

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