Donny van de Beek reveals his favoured position at Everton and has something special to say about fans

Donny van de Beek has praised the Goodison Park atmosphere as ‘amazing’ and said the fans ‘made the difference’ in Saturday’s Premier League win over Leeds United.

The Dutchman played the full 90 minutes and was named Man of the Match as the Toffee’s cruised to a 3-0 win.

And he praised the Goodison faithful for creating an amazing atmosphere and pushing the team on.

Speaking to Evertontv, Van de Beek said: “It was an amazing day and a good start for me.

“We played really well from the first minute to the end – and we really needed this - but it was not only us, the fans really made the difference.

“The atmosphere was so amazing and I enjoyed that.”

On his own performance

Van de Beek played a key role in Saturday’s comprehensive win, running the midfield, taking up intelligent positions and distributing the ball effectively - it was his cross that fell to Seamus Coleman for the opener.

Reflecting on Saturday’s performance, the 24-year-old took a lot of positives - mainly completing a first full Premier League game since May last year - and spoke of his drive to improve.

He said: “I am really happy to play 90 minutes, but in the last 20 minutes I felt it was a long time ago that I played a full game and I was a little bit tired.

“I think I can help the team but still there is space for improvement.

“I was sharp, took many balls and made some good decisions on the ball – but I am always critical and always can do better.

“I am happy to play my first game – but it is not about me, it is about winning games for the club and the team and I am here to help.”

When asked about his favoured position and what he plans to bring to Goodison, Van de Beek added: “I think I can play in different positions and I like to play in the Premier League as a number eight, box-to-box.

“The manager wants me to bring some quality with the ball, to link-up in midfield. He expects a lot from me and I expect a lot from myself.

“I am really happy with the first two weeks.”

Praise for Gordon

The former Ajax man was named Toffee’s Man of the Match, but the award could easily have gone to boyhood Evertonian Anthony Gordon.

The 20-year-old was electric on Saturday, giving Leeds’ defenders nightmares with his direct running - he also laid claim to the third and final goal when Richarlison’s shot deflected off his heel.

And Van de Beek was full of praise for his new teammate.

He said: “He is a good player, a young player but from what I have seen in the first weeks he has a lot of qualities and he showed those against Leeds.

“But everyone, not only one or two players, were good and important – and it should be like that.

“It was a good effort from ourselves and the atmosphere was so impressive and made a big difference.

“Now we have to improve every week to go up in the table.”