James McCarthy has been tipped to become one of Europe’s top midfielders.
The 22-year-old was a £13m arrival at Everton on transfer deadline day as Blues boss Roberto Martinez moved to sign him for the second time.
Having first recruited the Irish international for Wigan from Hamilton Academicals, Martinez helped groom him into a consistent and technically excellent performer.
And the Goodison chief sees no barrier to McCarthy’s potential.
Martinez told evertontv: “Obviously when you’ve been working with a player previously – and with James I was doing that when he was at a very, very young age – you can only be surprised in the manner with which he coped with the situation.
“He is a credit in the way he behaves and the way he performs. All in all, he could potentially be one of the top midfielders in European football.”
Martinez pointed towards the player’s impressive number of top flight appearances and his prior understanding of the Spaniard’s favoured tactical style as reasons why McCarthy is set to become an immediately significant asset at Goodison Park.
The boss added: “In any sort of environment, when you have a little bit of continuity and understanding the method of work, that always helps. More than anything, that can help with the settling-in period. That’s important for any player.
“James is a veteran already at a very young age. Only at 22, he has played many, many games in the Premier League and is a full international with a terrific attitude and a great personality on the pitch.
“He’s a youngster with a real Everton make-up in that respect. He brings something that we haven’t got and he adds to that special young generation that we have at the Club already.
“That really excites me in terms of looking at how he will develop in the next stage of his career.”