Evertonians have been hailed for their generosity and are being asked to bring their boots to Goodison Park again.
Although transfer deadline day signings Donny van de Beek and Dele Alli are both ineligible to make their debuts against Brentford in the FA Cup on Saturday after playing for Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur respectively in the previous round, new manager Frank Lampard doesn’t actually need you to take to the turf for his first game in charge!
Rather, Everton fans will this weekend have another chance to donate unwanted football boots to needy children across Merseyside and beyond.
A ‘boot drop’ in aid of charityboots.com, held at Goodison ahead of the recent Aston Villa game, proved a hit with supporters, who donated around 50 pairs of boots.
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These were generously donated by the charity to the Unity Youth Centre, based in Toxteth.
And the dedicated drop-off container will again be in place in front of the Dixie Dean gates on Goodison Road this Saturday, ahead of the FA Cup tie against Brentford.
Charityboots.com are working with Blues defender Yerry Mina, who has previously shipped unwanted boots to underprivileged children to the player’s foundation in his native Colombia.
Mina said: "I'm very happy to be supporting Charity Boots as it will help so many people in England, my homeland of Colombia and other countries across the world.
"Through the campaign, 500 pairs of boots have already been donated to my charity. Now we are hoping there will be even more with the help of the Evertonians.
"So, if fans have any pairs of football boots at home that they no longer use, they can donate them at Goodison Park on Saturday when they cheer on the Blues!"
Mina and his team-mate Richarlison started the initial collection from Everton at Finch Farm last month, where a dedicated drop-off bin remains in place for players and staff to contribute to the appeal.
Neil Smith, founder of Charityboots.org, said: “The support from Everton fans at the Aston Villa game was a great success.
“We saw people of all ages coming to drop off used boots, and the best part is that we were able to donate these boots directly back into the community to a youth club in Toxteth.
“We’re looking forward to meeting supporters again this weekend and helping to provide more football boots to kids in local areas.
"We change the inner soles, change the laces, give the boots a deep clean and bring them back to life.
“It’s a full circle, but the real concept is to close the gap of poverty and, from an environmental point of view, to reduce waste.
“It’s all self-funded and it’s got so much value. We’re trying to make an impact in communities where it’s needed and unfortunately, there’s a lot of people out there, especially after Covid, who can’t afford boots.
“We’re trying to close that gap between the ones that have and the ones that don’t have, so we’re fully behind this and with the support and love from Everton fans and club, hopefully we can make a big difference.
“Every boot will be reused for a good cause, either recycled or donated to a kid who needs them.”
