Anthony Gordon wants to leave nothing to chance as he prepares to lead Everton's charge when the Premier League returns.
The 21-year-old started the season well - scoring important goals at Brentford and Leeds United - but was disappointed by his form as the campaign headed into the World Cup break. Since then he has had a productive month, hitting a hat-trick on the club's Australia tour before heading to the Middle East as part of a personal fitness regime.
Gordon said he carried on working during his time off because he wanted to do everything to ensure he could have an impact from Boxing Day onwards. That game against Wolverhampton Wanderers is the first in a crucial run for the Blues as they look to climb away from the relegation zone.
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Reflecting on the first part of the season, Gordon explained his decision to undergo warm-weather training in Dubai by telling the ECHO : "I felt like my form hasn't been where it could have been this year, so for me it was about getting to a certain level of fitness and coming back 100% and leaving nothing to chance. I was always going to come back raring to play and that's what I have done."
The England Under-21 international was part of the Everton squad involved in the Sydney Super Cup before he went to Dubai and played a key role across the two games. He scored the winning penalty in the shoot-out against Celtic and then a hat-trick in the 5-1 thumping of Western Sydney Wanderers.
They were his first goals since his back-to-back efforts at Brentford and Leeds, goals which earned the Blues draws in both games. They came as Everton aim to provide more of an attacking threat in the second part of the season, an ambition Gordon will be essential to realising.
He knows he will need to be a big part of that and is working hard under the guidance of Frank Lampard to show he can be the solution to the quest for more goals. Lampard's main demand of the player he rates so highly is simple - to score as many as possible. But the request comes with the advice and guidance of the Premier League's greatest midfield goalscorer - which isn't lost on Gordon.
Speaking as he donated food and toiletries to Everton in the Community's Blue Base Pantry, the youngster explained: "For me to have someone who has scored so many goals in his career and who has succeeded at the level I want to go to has been massive because of the amount of little tips and natural habits he had as a player. He is just trying to pass them onto me.
"I think he is a top coach, I can't speak highly enough of him as a coach and as a person. He's amazing not just with me but with everyone, he's just a really top coach."
Gordon's relationship with his manager is "superb", he said. Both speak highly of each other in personal and in private and the latest Finch Farm training images show the pair joking during drills. With Wolves fast approaching, Gordon believes his team-mates are in good shape to resume the season strongly.
He said: "We will be ready, the lads have come back really fit and really strong, they haven't slacked off during the break so we are in a really good place at the minute, training really well and we just need to take that into the games. My message to the fans would to enjoy the games, stick with us as always and we will give them as many good days as possible."
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