Striker Chris Long says working under Kevin Sheedy and Duncan Ferguson inspired the goalscoring form which earned him his England call-up for the Under-20 World Cup.
The 18-year-old was confirmed in Peter Taylor’s final 21-man squad on Tuesday morning.
A regular on the scoresheet for Everton’s Under-18s, Long capped an impressive campaign with a first strike for Alan Stubbs’ Under-21s in the final game of the season at Tottenham.
He also grabbed two at Goodison Park in an FA Youth Cup clash against Norwich City to take his season’s tally in the competition to four.
And Long says training every day alongside Everton’s legendary duo has pushed him to eke out the very best from his game.
“Words can’t describe it. With Sheeds and Dunc’s history at the club – they are legends,” Long told evertontv. “It’s an honour to play in front of them.
“My form in front of goal has been good and I scored more than I did last season.
“I’ve enjoyed scoring for the team and getting in places to do so.”
Long’s achievements earned him a place in a provisional 35-man squad for next month’s World Cup, a competition which will take place in Turkey.
And after impressing Taylor at a training camp last week, the youngster can now look forward to group games against Iraq, Chile and Egypt.
“I’ve got back into the England setup and at the end of the season I played in the play-offs for [Everton’s] Under-21s. That was good for me,” he added.
“I’m happy to be playing more regularly for the Under-21s and I feel like I have done my bit for the Under-18s too.
“It’s been a good season but I need to push myself to play even better now though.”