Dominic Calvert-Lewin has admitted it is 'every boy's dream' to go to a World Cup after he scored the opener in Everton's stunning 3-0 win against Crystal Palace - with Gareth Southgate in the stands.
The Toffees striker opened the scoring inside 11 minutes at Goodison Park, taking Alex Iwobi's pinpoint pass in his stride and bulldozing through Marc Guehi before a precise finish past Vicente Guaita. Second-half goals from Anthony Gordon and Dwight McNeil sealed a first win in four matches to take Frank Lampard's side into 11th.
Prior to Saturday's win, Everton had failed to score three goals in a single game all season and had only bagged twice on one occasion - in the 2-1 win at Southampton - but the presence of a fit and firing Calvert-Lewin finally provided Lampard with the focal point he had been craving. And after a tumultuous couple of months on the sidelines, the 25-year-old could not understate the importance of opening his account for the campaign.
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"We did [need that win]. It's a great feeling to be back at Goodison,” Calvert-Lewin told BBC Sport. “For the team and for myself to get the win today it went exactly how I hoped. It’s been a while, one I’ve been waiting for, one I’ve been looking forward to and I felt like myself today. It’s been a long time coming but great to get the result."
Asked what it meant to open his account for the season, he added: "Everything. As a striker you feed off confidence and you feed off goals so for me to get the goal today in the way that I did was nice to start the game like that. A lot of hard work has gone into getting that first goal so I am over the moon."
Sitting in the stands at Goodison was Southgate, fresh from sending off his provisional 55-man squad for the World Cup next month. The England manager has opted against releasing the shortlist, but his presence on Merseyside today suggests a few potential surprise picks were present - be it for Everton or Palace.
Calvert-Lewin is thought to be included as a potential back-up for Harry Kane, and if today's performance is anything to go by, the Sheffield-born striker has given Southgate plenty to think about. But, despite his admission that it is 'every boy's dream' to feature, he remains focused purely on performing for the Blues.
"It’s every boy's dream to go to the World Cup. I’ve been counting down the days to get back on the pitch and all I can do is play the best I can for Everton and score goals and see where that takes me. First and foremost it’s what I do here."
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