Everton told they once had a player just as talented as Wayne Rooney, he’s their ‘biggest regret’

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Everton have seen some top quality players come and go over the years.

The obvious name which stands out from the rest is always going to be Wayne Rooney given what he went to achieve elsewhere.

David Moyes was the man to hand the England legend his Premier League debut all the way back in 2002.

It did not take Rooney long to make a name for himself at Goodison Park with that goal coming against Arsenal as a 16-year-old.

An Everton fan, Rooney grew up idolising Duncan Ferguson for what he was providing on the pitch.

He was not the only player who showed positive signs during the early stages of his career at Finch Farm, though.

There is one player who a former Everton academy chief now labels as his ‘biggest regret’.

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Everton had a player just as talented as Wayne Rooney

From an early age, Rooney wowed Everton scouts from as young as the age of just eight.

And it did not take long for other clubs to recognise the Englishman’s talent as Manchester United quickly swooped in and snapped him up.

Speaking on Toffee TV, former Everton academy Neil Dewsnip said Francis Jeffers had just as much talent as Rooney.

“I’m going to put Francis Jeffers in the same group [as Rooney]. Francis introduces himself to my daughters as: ‘Hi, I’m Francis and I’m your Dad’s biggest regret’. And the regret is Franny should have played for England alongside Wayne for 10 years, he was that good,” he said.

“Arsene Wenger got it right, he was definitely a fox in the box. He could predict where that ball was going to be and he had great ability to score. It’s not for me to say why it didn’t happen.”

Moyes said Rooney was the best player he ever managed, with Jeffers only playing 22 times under the Scot.

Jeffers won a Premier League and two FA Cups during his time in north London, but there is a clear feeling that he could have accomplished more.

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What Arsene Wenger said about Francis Jeffers

Jeffers played more times for Everton than he did for any other side during his career.

Although he was able to lift three trophies in north London, his time there will have been filled with regret after only playing 39 times across three years.

It is no surprise really that he played so infrequently given he was battling the likes of Thierry Henry for a spot in the starting XI.

However, Arsene Wenger did sing his praises despite the lack of consistent game time he received.

“Francis is that ‘fox in the box’ we have been talking about and although he is a goalscorer I want to develop him as a team player so he is not obsessed by just scoring goals.”