Something weird happened to Tom Davies when he visited Australia in the summer. The Everton player treated his family to a trip to spend some time with relatives living in Perth, and spent a few weeks criss-crossing the continent taking in all the tourist sights, including Uluru, formerly known as Ayers Rock. Nothing unusual in that: Davies still lives with his parents and it was his way of showing his gratitude for the support they gave him when he was establishing himself as a footballer. “We all had a great time,” he explains. “Just doing normal things like anyone would on holiday. Then one day at Ayers Rock a guy came up and said: ‘Excuse me, are you Tom Davies?’ I was amazed. I don’t get that all that much at home, never mind in outback Australia. And this guy was an Australian, not even a fellow tourist.”
Davies might have to get used to it sooner rather than later. Still only 19, his already distinctive appearance draws attention to what he does on the field, which is usually quite a lot. “I get around the pitch,” he says, modestly. “I like to think I bring a bit of energy to the team. My game has always been quite high-energy, that’s what I think I am good at.”
Others think so, too. The confidence and composure he has shown since Ronald Koeman gave him his first-team break last season belies his age, and even though he has found himself in and out of the side as Everton have struggled for results in the last couple of months – at Brighton on Sunday they are looking to avoid a fifth defeat in eight league games – his response to the situation is a mature one.
“It’s part of football, isn’t it?” he says. “I didn’t expect my career to be all flowers and roses. This is just another part of my development really, a good challenge. I’ve got to show I’m good enough to deserve a place and I’m definitely going to work on that.
“The players Everton have brought in have quality, I’m already learning from them in training. I don’t want to be negative about anything, the standard in training has gone up, even if our results aren’t showing that at the moment. What I have to do now is work hard to try and get ahead of the players that have been brought in, and I am willing to give that a go. No one actually told me that the second season is often more difficult than the first for a young player but I’ve managed to figure that out for myself.”
There have been suggestions that Koeman has unbalanced the team with the summer acquisitions and some supporters clearly feel that with Davies in the side Everton’s performances this season might not have been so uneven, but the midfielder is not about to complain about a manager who showed enough belief in him to make him a first-teamer at the age of 18. “Ronald Koeman is a manager who demands high standards,” he says. “That’s the way he is and for me that’s been good because he’s brought a lot out of me. He’s already taught me a lot about the game. You can say he is demanding but as a manager that’s what you need.
“He sets high standards for the team and if you don’t meet them you are going to hear about it. If you give the ball away you know you are going to get told you need to do better. Even when we are not playing well he’s not going to let you off if you make a mistake, but that’s good for us all. He might come across as tough but he’s got a side to him where you can go up and speak to him.”
Someone else Davies has found himself speaking to of late is Wayne Rooney, perhaps an even bigger footballing icon to a lifelong Evertonian. Rooney joined Everton at the age of nine, Davies at 11, long after the forward had left for Manchester United. Yet it would not be an exaggeration to say the younger player has spent his entire life looking up to the older one. Even now it is possible to detect a sense of awe when Davies reflects on the trophies Rooney has won and the career statistics he has put together.
“Wayne has been great, but I don’t mind admitting it was kind of weird when he came back,” Davies says. “It was strange having him around at first, almost surreal actually, but after a few days it all felt quite natural again. He offers help and advice, he took me aside for a chat once after I had come off the pitch unhappy with my performance.
“For someone who grew up supporting the club that still takes some getting used to, but it says a lot that after the career he’s had and everything he has won he still takes an interest in how younger players are getting on.”
Rooney would not be able to get all the way to Uluru before being recognised, and Davies is not sure how he would cope with that level of fame and attention, but for now he is happy doing what he has always done. “I’m in a bubble at the moment, enjoying my life and my football,” he says. “I still have the same friends I’ve always had, I still like to go out around Liverpool. In one way everything changed for me last season but in another way everything stayed just the same. I don’t have any immediate plans to do anything differently.”
That goes for the trademark rolled-down socks, too, though Davies is happy to confirm he is not attempting a fashion statement, an act of rebellion or a homage to favourite players from the 1960s with his casual-looking approach. “It’s just the way I like to play, my calves get quite tight if they are compressed, so I have always rolled my socks down. It just feels more natural. Referees don’t mind as long as the pads are in place. I’ve been doing it since I was a kid so I don’t see any reason to change now.”