34-year-old says Jordan Pickford and Seamus Coleman both urged him to sign for Everton

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Everton, despite the horrors suffered in recent years, has actually forged quite a few heroes at Goodison Park.

It is true that negativity and terrible form breed opportunity, and the select few who have stepped up to take it have become somewhat revered by the fanbase just for giving their all.

Jordan Pickford’s immense quality in the face of such unrelenting pressure in goal, and Seamus Coleman’s tireless leadership despite suffering so many personal setbacks, have both made then modern-day Everton heroes; they should be celebrated as much.

And now, Idrissa Gana Gueye has sought to outline how their influence extends far further than merely on the pitch.

Who Seamus Coleman and Jordan Pickford convinced to join Everton

Speaking to the Liverpool ECHO about the circumstances of his return to Merseyside, the 34-year-old laughed about how his time in France never truly saw him shake Everton away.

They remained a constant thought, and he even detailed how his support remained even throughout the tougher periods.

But, there was a key reason why he felt he had to come back, with the help of a few key figures convincing him to do so.

He claimed: ‘They called me because they needed me and I said ‘I will come and help’. It would be easy if they were up at the top or even in the middle of the table but if you love the club then you have to come in the bad moments.

‘Lampard called me, Seamus sent me a message, Jordan too and I was part of this team even if I was in Paris. They asked me to come help and I said ‘let’s go!’. At first I was like ‘Why have you called, I want to stay here!’ but they said ‘Yeah but we need you’ and the only club I could leave PSG for now was Everton so we made the deal.’

Idrissa Gana Gueye absolutely loves Everton

It is strange the way in which some players, born thousands of miles away from Goodison Park and with no prior affiliation, can take to the club in such a dramatic way.

Naturally, seeing homegrown talents vocalise their adulation is to be expected, but when players like Richarlison emerge to forge an unbreakable bond with the fans, it takes everyone by surprise.

Few can explain why they love the Toffees so much, but nobody complains.

It seems like the same clearly occurred with Gueye, who whilst not quite on the same cult hero status as the Brazilian forward, has still been a dependable stalwart for many years now despite his three-year hiatus to the French capital.

Such unrelenting support is detailed in that aforementioned report though, where he outlines how he never missed a game, often forcing the likes of Kylian Mbappe to watch Everton with him.

One quote in particular stands out: ‘I was part of this team even if I was in Paris.’

It seems like Goodison Park never really left his mind despite starring in the Champions League with Paris Saint-Germain. So, to return valiantly to try and push them back to where he feels they belong is so admirable, and indicative of his upstanding character.