Patience a virtue for Coleman
Called into the squad amid some fanfare for last November’s friendly against Norway, a posse of the Everton player’s friends and family made the long trip down from Donegal to the capital only to wait in vain for his introduction from the bench.
His bow finally arrived two months ago in the facile 3-0 triumph over Wales, but any hopes of building on what was an encouraging first hour in green were scuppered yesterday when he was officially pulled from this week’s party because of an ankle injury.
Not exactly ideal but then his possible participation was doubtful as early as last Tuesday when Trapattoni signalled a clear preference to start Kevin Foley in the right-back slot vacated by John O’Shea’s hamstring issues.
With just three senior appearances to his credit, Foley didn’t exactly trump the one-capped Coleman for experience at this level but he has been playing right-back for Wolves after a stint in midfield and that stood to him in Trap’s eyes.
Coleman has followed the opposite path with Everton where he has excelled on the right of midfield this season despite having arrived on Merseyside as a right-back and still being listed as a defender on the club’s website.
“At the end of the day he’s the manager and it’s his decision,” said the 22-year-old prior to his return to Merseyside. “It was talked about, playing Kevin Foley, and Kevin Foley has done fantastic this season playing right-back for Wolves. He deserves his chance. Obviously I want to play as well. Hopefully I will get a couple of games down the line somewhere.”
His chance will come. Eventually.
That is a given considering his meteoric rise from St Catherine’s in Donegal via Sligo Rovers and on to the Premier League where he has scored six times and added a dynamic dimension to Everton’s right flank.
His burgeoning talent was in evidence again last Saturday when he was named man of the match after netting the side’s opener with a textbook header in a 2-1 win over Fulham at Goodison Park and that ability to poach goals is indicative of his rate of improvement.
Though a regular contributor to the scoresheet with St Catherine’s, where he played central midfield, he managed just one goal in over two years with Sligo and another solitary effort during a successful loan spell at Blackpool last season.
Playing at the highest level has obviously brought the best out in him but so too has the daily diet of coaching received at Everton, something which he admits to having lacked prior to his move from the north-west of Ireland to the English equivalent.
“It’s not just that, (it’s) the everyday training sessions with top-quality players. If you’re not going to get better, you’re not going to stay training with them so you’ve got to get better every day in training. That’s what has helped really, just training with those players every day.”
That Fulham performance seemed to signal the end of a so-so run of personal form which, given his youth and the 34 games he has played this season, was perfectly in keeping with the average graph for up and coming players.
Moyes may be a signed-up member of his fan club but he is no sycophant and has already gone on record to declare that the Donegal man needs to improve his passing. Coleman speaks admiringly of his manager and assistant Steve Round for their role in his development since joining Everton ahead of reported interest from clubs like Celtic and Birmingham City and that sort of advice is being lapped up.
“I’m sure with every good thing he says he probably doesn’t want me to get ahead of myself. To hear that from your club manager is fantastic, that I should be in contention for Young Player of the Year. He’s a man I want to be impressing so hopefully I’ve done that this season.”
Life is good off the pitch. too. A shy enough character, he is finally coming to terms with being recognised on the street in Liverpool and has settled in to an apartment near the Russian winger Diniyar Bilyaletdinov and French youngster Magaye Gueye.
That said, he remains something of a self-confessed homebird and tries to get back to Killybegs as often as possible but there will be surely many a week to come when he only makes it as far west as Dublin 4.
“Whenever I play I just want to impress so whether I come on for 10 minutes or I don’t come on I just want to keep impressing for Everton and hopefully I will come back and I will get a start for Ireland some day.”
You can count on that.