Kinsella to join Irish contingent at Everton

Roberto Martinez has enlarged his Irish colony at Goodison Park after convincing 15-year-old Steven Kinsella to choose Everton over Manchester United.

The gifted winger – already playing for Ireland’s U17s – received a visit in Dublin from the Spaniard last October as the chase for his capture intensified.

His personal intervention worked, as both Manchester clubs, Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur were also vying for the teen’s signature.

Martinez has built his thriving Toffees side on an Irish backbone, last week adding Aiden McGeady to the existing trio of Seamus Coleman, James McCarthy and Darron Gibson.

He believes, too, that the future can remain green as Kinsella becomes the third teen to move cross-channel in the past 18 months.

Unlike most of the talented Irish gems that join the major British clubs, Kinsella doesn’t hail from a traditional superpower of schoolboy football. Instead, he developed at his own pace from the age of eight at Templeogue United under the guidance of his father, former Bohemians stalwart Alan.

Yesterday, Everton’s Irish scout Paul Hamilton welcomed the deal: “We’ve been working for two years to get Steven over the line, so everybody at the club is naturally delighted,” he said.