Everton youngster João Virgínia is finally having his first chances to play for the club’s first team this season.
Following his debut in an EFL Cup game against Salford City back in September, he’s now featured in the Premier League versus Burnley at the weekend, due to an injury picked up by Jordan Pickford.
That obviously meant a lot for the 21-year-old, who’s been in England since 2015. That’s why he’s spoken to the media from his home country this week, in an interview featured by Portuguese newspaper O Jogo.
Virgínia shared all the details about his first chance in the league, claiming he spoke to Pickford himself before entering the game.
“I was warming up for ten minutes and, in the game against Leeds, about a month ago, I had also been warming up and I didn’t enter. I was next to Pickford, while he was getting assistance, and he was the one who told me he couldn’t carry on – that’s when I knew it was my moment,” Virgínia told O Jogo.
“He told me to play simple and be cool. I went in with a goal kick and, for the rest of the game, it was like I was in some other game, I didn’t even think if it was in the Premier League or in the youth team. I had already played a game in the League Cup but this was in the Premier and it was to play in this that I came to England. This was one of my first goals.
“The phone kept ringing and for an hour after the game I didn’t even see messages. I came home and it was only afterwards that I was able to respond to everyone.”
Now with Everton playing Manchester City at the weekend, Virgínia was asked by O Jogo if he’ll be able to face his compatriots Rúben Dias and Bernardo Silva.
“At this point, I still don’t know what the coach’s option will be for the next game or if Jordan will recover, and there’s Olsen as well. But I feel ready to play and it’d be great to play against a team like City.”
He claims not only to be focused on the next game, as his main goal is to have a solid career at the Goodison Park.
“I’ll try to seize this opportunity, I hope it’ll be this one, but I have to be prepared for all possibilities, even if I return to the bench in the next game. I have to be aware that this was just a game. But I don’t want to play just one game, I want to play 100, 200, 300, many more.”
