Frank Lampard is excited about what Dominic Calvert-Lewin can do this season with the Everton manager hitting out at those who have questioned his “uniqueness” off the pitch and come to their own conclusions about him. The Sheffield-born striker netted 21 goals for the Blues in 2020/21 but was hampered by injuries last term with a quadriceps problem keeping him out for four months and then a series of niggles impacting on his return in the second half of the campaign.
Calvert-Lewin’s passion for fashion saw him appear on the cover of industry magazines Arena Homme Plus and GQ, leading some to question his commitment to Everton’s battle to stay in the Premier League but he ultimately headed in the winning goal in their dramatic 3-2 comeback victory over Crystal Palace in their final home game which secured their top flight status, banishing fears of a first relegation in 71 years. Speaking on his hopes for the player ahead of the 2022/23 campaign from the club’s training camp in the USA, where Calvert-Lewin and team-mate Tom Davies took time out to have a light-hearted look at their team-mates' styles, Lampard told evertontv : “I couldn’t have been more happy for a player to score that goal that goes down in Everton history. You get goosebumps when you think about it, we’ve all watched it a thousand times since with commentary on, everything, it’s just an amazing goal and I’m delighted for him.
“For the modern player, much more than my time, it’s got carried away with itself, this world of social media, criticism and opinion. Dominic Calvert-Lewin has been a huge player for this football club since he’s been here, scoring big numbers of goals, a top striker and in that top bracket of strikers in the league, in the England squad.
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“Then of course, all eyes are on, and Dominic shows a bit of personality, a bit of uniqueness off the pitch, which is how he is and I think we should applaud rather than question, people want to put two and two together maybe in terms of what Dominic is. I saw Dominic in my time at the club, striving, doing everything to be fit, to be as good as he can be because he’s had his injuries, so I was delighted with the powerhouse we saw in those last games of the season is Dominic, that’s Dominic.
“He’s had a break, he’s come back and been really positive in training and done really well and I’m really positive about what he can do this season. I love working with Dominic, he’s a great talent, a dream to work with, easy, he works, he’s strong and affects people around him and has his quality. A fully fit Dominic will be something for us to get excited about this season.”
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