300 Games Strong

Today is a landmark moment for LEIGHTON BAINES as he makes his 300th PREMIER LEAGUE appearance FOR EVERTON - and, while the left-back is not one to obsess over numbers, he admits there are MANY reasons to be excited as the Blues make strides under Ronald Koeman.

- Mike Taylor

Exactly nine-and-a-half years on from his long-awaited Everton debut, Leighton Baines hopes to make his 300th Premier League appearance for the Blues this afternoon.

Baines, now the second longest-serving member of the current squad behind Phil Jagielka, who was signed a month earlier during the summer of 2007, is not one to obsess over numbers. But when it comes to painting an honest and insightful picture of the current landscape at L4, few are better placed.

“It is an incredibly positive position that the team and the Football Club is in at the moment,” says the left-back. “On the pitch, there is a good blend of experienced lads and lads coming through and, of course, off the pitch there is plenty to be excited about. The manager has come in and he’s doing a good job, so I think if you look at the whole picture of the Club, we’re in as good - or better - position than we’ve been in for a long time.

“For me, it will be nice to reach 300 games for this Club, but things like that are never in the forefront of my mind. I just deal with the next game and prepare for that. However, I’m sure when the time comes to look back, there will be pride in it.”

Even on reflection to date, it has been an incredible journey.

Rewind two decades and Baines, accompanied by older cousin Liam, regularly made the 50p bus journey from hometown Kirkby to Goodison Park in the hope of sneaking in for the final 10 minutes to catch a glimpse of his beloved Everton.

In those days – the mid-to-late 1990s – he watched the rugged determination of Dave Watson and David Unsworth shine for Joe Royle’s Dogs of War.