The Portugal youth international made his first appearance of the season off the bench against West Ham
Youssef Chermiti is back fit and back in an Everton shirt. Now he wants his first Everton goal.
The striker made his first appearance of the Premier League season on Saturday against West Ham United. Chermiti was introduced as a second-half substitute with the Blues a goal down in the game and sparked a toiling attack into life with an impressive cameo in the final stages.
It was a timely reminder of the potential of the Portugal Under-21 international, who has had his season wrecked by a succession of injury problems.
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“Of course it’s very nice to be back on the pitch,” Chermiti told evertontv. “I’ve been out for a while so for me to be back out there and be able to play in front of the fans is a very good feeling for me.
“I feel strong. I’ve been out for a long time, so I’ve been working on my body and I want to thank Carl (Howarth) (physiotherapist) and everyone from the medical team who has helped me during my time out.
“Now I’m at this point, I just want to keep getting involved – keep getting minutes in the bank and try to score my first goal… hopefully at Goodison Park! That’s my goal.
“I feel the love from the supporters. Every time I play here, I feel that energy and that love from the fans. It’s a great feeling.”
Chermiti impressed in pre-season for Everton and scored twice in a 3-3 draw against Sligo Rovers. He looked set to play a more prominent role in his second campaign with the club as a result, before he suffered a freak injury in training and required surgery.
As a result, returning Blues manager David Moyes has admitted he is still learning about the 20-year-old centre-forward.
“Youssef got two great shots on target and when you think about how many shots on target can you manage through a game, Youssef managed to get two on target very quickly,” he said.
“The truth is I’ve not really had a chance, and to be fair not many Evertonians have either because he’s been injured just about the whole season and the same with (Armando) Broja so we’re all just really getting to see them for the first time.”
