Gylfi Sigurdsson column: I can't wait to make my Everton home debut on historic day for Goodison Park

Sport360 staff 01:31 09/09/2017
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  • Gylfi Sigurdsson cost the Toffees a club record £45m.

    I count myself fortunate to have played at Goodison Park a number of times in my professional career but the opportunity to play there in the blue of Everton this weekend, on what is a landmark occasion for one of the most iconic grounds in English football, promises to be extra special.

    Everton will mark the 125th anniversary of Goodison Park when my old club, Tottenham Hotspur, visit Merseyside for what will be another major test of our top-six credentials.

    I know from personal experience that a trip to Goodison can be intimidating for opposition players. The Everton fans are really loud and get right behind the team, which is why it was never a nice place to come as an opponent.

    But now I am a Blue, I can look forward to embracing Goodison’s unique atmosphere and channeling that energy and passion in a positive way as we look to build on what has been a promising start to the season.

    From the moment I first became aware that Everton were interested in signing me, I knew this was where I wanted to be.

    This is a club that is going places. The ambition was there for everyone to see this summer as our manager, Ronald Koeman, set about making a succession of high-profile signings.

    But, for me, it is not just about the business the club has done since the end of last season; Everton has been building momentum over the past couple of transfer windows, bringing in really good players who can take the club to the next level.

    It was this desire to push on which, ultimately, persuaded me to leave Swansea, where I had three great years, and become part of what the manager is building here.

    Our immediate goal was to get through the Europa League qualifiers and qualify for the group stages, which I am pleased to say we did after beating Hajduk Split over two legs. Now we want to go as far as we possibly can in the competition and test ourselves against the best in Europe.

    As for the Premier League, we know it’s going to be tough to break into the elite group of clubs at the top of the league, but that must be our aim over the next few years.

    It would be fantastic for everyone at the club if we could break into the top four and play Champions League football.

    On a personal level, I am an ambitious person and I put pressure on myself to improve every day, and every season.

    I like to set myself targets, both in terms of goals and assists. It was a great feeling to get my first Everton goal on my full debut against Hajduk Split, although even I was not expecting it to be in such dramatic circumstances.

    I have watched that goal back several times since and thought to myself, ‘What was I thinking?!’ I just took a chance that the keeper was off his line – and thankfully he was.

    It was a goal I will never forget and hopefully it’s the first of many for my new club, although I cannot promise they will all be as good as that one.

    But as long as I am contributing to the success of the team, hopefully starting with a positive performance against Tottenham this weekend, then I will be happy.

    After a blip against Chelsea before the international break, I want to play my part in ensuring we bounce back with a strong performance at Goodison that is befitting of the occasion.

    Great performance, great result! No better feeling than scoring for your country 🇮🇸

    A post shared by Gylfi Sigurdsson (@gylfisig23) on

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