Chelsea striker Aggie Beever-Jones has opened up on the "overwhelming" moment she signed her first professional contract and the "surreal" experience of playing alongside her idol, Fran Kirby.
The 19-year-old, who is currently enjoying an impressive loan spell at Everton, was scouted by Chelsea while playing for a local boys side and came through the academy ranks before being called up to train with the first team. After catching the eye of manager Emma Hayes, Beever-Jones was handed her senior debut at the age of just 17, coming off the bench in a 4-0 win over Aston Villa.
The teenager penned her first professional deal with the Blues in the summer of 2021 before spending the subsequent season on loan with Championship outfit Bristol City. And the striker is continuing to flourish during her stint at Walton Hall Park this term, something she in part attributes to the lessons learnt during her time at Chelsea's Cobham training ground.
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"It was definitely overwhelming at first," Beever-Jones said, reflecting on her integration into Emma Hayes' side. "As a kid, you always have aspirations to make it and play with the first team and play with your idols.
"For me it was Fran Kirby, so getting to play alongside her was a massive personal achievement. At the time, it felt so surreal and I never really thought the day was going to come. I was just enjoying my time at the academy and then I got the call up to train up a few times and then I got given a contract which was probably one of the best days of my life. "
Another of Beever-Jones' career highlights came last month, when the youngster notched her first WSL goal in quite spectacular fashion - her long-range effort helping Everton to an impressive win over mid-table rivals West Ham. And while she has had to wait patiently to find the back of the net for the Toffees, she is hopeful her strike against the Hammers will be the first of many league goals during her time on Merseyside.
"Coming from Chelsea, you have a bit of a reputation," she said. "Obviously I wanted the (WSL goal) to come sooner but I’d like to think it was a good goal to make up for the time I’ve not scored!
"It comes down to practising and I’ve been practising with all the coaches my shooting and finishing. It was a weight off my shoulders getting that goal. It’s great scoring and providing goals but it comes down to our performances too and now goals are coming from all over the park, which is even better."
Everton currently sit fifth in the table after a string of impressive displays in the WSL, and while Beever-Jones is only slated to stay at Walton Hall Park until the summer, she is fully committed to helping the Toffees to finish the campaign as strongly as possible. And though the teenager is under no illusions about the fierce competition for places in Chelsea's senior squad, she is determined to use that challenge as motivation to become the best player she can be.
"With the way women’s football is going at the moment, every club has major players and I just look at that as a challenge and I set a bar for myself by looking at the likes of Sam Kerr and Fran (Kirby)," she said.
"If anything, when I’m (at Cobham) they always help me and coach me and we’re all working towards the same thing, which is Chelsea doing really well. It’s the same here at Everton.
"I look at it as a goal I want to reach and I’ll do everything I can to be the best player I can. It is daunting and when you think about it you can go down a bit of a bad route but the main thing is just to focus on yourself and what you know you can achieve and hopefully that’s what I’ll be able to do."
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