Dan The Future England Man?

Ever since he joined Premier League side Everton, Dan Gosling has grown in stature as he has scored goals against some of the biggest teams in Europe. He is a youngster on a mission, after being chosen as part of the England Under 21 team in November his next step will undoubtedly be the England Senior side.

Gosling started his career as a Pilgrim, the 20 year old was a huge hit at Home Park, as he rose through the youth system into the first team in the year 2006. While with Plymouth, Gosling was used as a full-back mainly on the right side of the pitch; also he played a number of games on the right-wing for Plymouth. He made his senior career debut for Plymouth against Hull City in the 2005/2006 season, at the tender age of just 16.

Manager at the time Ian Holloway saw potential in Gosling, and he decided to convert the youngster to right-back as a replacement for the injured Kouo- Doumbe. His impressive performances caught the attention of a number of Premier League clubs, and in the year 2007, Plymouth decided to let him train with Chelsea for a week along with fellow Plymouth Argyle teammates Scott Sinclair and Luke Summerfield. However in the year 2008 after featuring 22 times for the Pilgrims and scoring two goals in the process, the young talent of Dan Gosling decided to sign a deal with high flying Premier League side, Everton.

Onto his Everton career now and ever since he joined the Toffees in the year 2008, Gosling has been given a number of chances to perform by manager David Moyes, and from my point of view he hasn’t let anybody down. First team starts have been limited for Gosling, as the Everton manager David Moyes has a number of international midfield stars to choose from. However when given the chance, Gosling has shown his potential against the so called top four. As he scored the winning goal in an FA Cup tie against rivals Liverpool, a goal which was missed by a number of people(not me incidentally), but it was a goal which will always live long and hard in the memories of Everton Football Club and Dan Gosling’s family.

This season he has performed excellently well for Everton, however most of his appearances have come from the substitute bench. Gosling is one of many youngsters in the Everton set-up, but probably one of the most inspiring. Along with centre midfielder Jack Rodwell, Dan Gosling has been noticed by some of the top clubs in the World. After a great performance against Manchester United, and his key goal against the Red Devils, soon sparked immediate rumours involving Gosling to a move to Manchester United. David Moyes though has squashed those rumours as he states that Rodwell and Gosling are not going anywhere in the summer transfer window. While playing for Everton, the former Plymouth man is a fans favourite with the Everton faithful, as they like to call him Super Dan, a name which was given to him when he scored that all important against Liverpool last season.

His impressive performances have been noted by England under 21 coach Stuart Pearce. Like I mentioned above Gosling was chosen by Pearce for November’s matches against Portugal and Lithuania. Gosling though only came on for a substitute for Villa youngster Fabian Delph in the game against Portugal. If the likes of Manchester United and Arsenal want the 20 year old, there must be something about the kid that England under 21 coaches are not seeing, after his incredible performances for his club side, he is definitely a player who should be considered for every England under 21 game. Gosling is a class act and in a couple of year’s time, he may progress into one of the best right-wingers in England. He probably won’t be the next David Beckham of some kind, but as places are always up for grabs because of injuries, Gosling could well get his senior England chance sooner rather than later.