‘I wore it a lot’: Beto says he used to have 30-year-old’s name on his Everton shirt

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Beto has revealed he is a huge fan of Romelu Lukaku.

The Everton striker has admitted in an interview with the club that he used to wear the Belgian’s shirt a lot during his time at Goodison Park.

Beto arrived at Everton last month after agreeing a £25.75 million deal to join the club from Udinese.

The 25-year-old netted ten goals in Serie A last season and will be eager to continue his goal threat with the Toffees, having got off the mark on his debut in the Carabao Cup.

There is a lot of pressure on Beto to perform, despite many predicting Everton to face relegation this season.

However, the forward seems unfazed by the club’s decline and has instead claimed that he always had a soft spot for Everton due to Lukaku’s time on Merseyside.

While he also names former Everton man Samuel Eto’o as his all-time hero, it is Lukaku whose shirt he used to sport.

Speaking to the club, Beto said: “My friends bought that shirt for me. I was watching Everton games all of the time and I was always speaking to them about Lukaku, Lukaku, Lukaku!

“On my birthday, my friends put in to buy me a shirt with his name and number on the back. I was at Portimonense at the time but I wore it a lot. A lot… As you could see, some of the letters were even peeling off!

“My first memories of Everton are watching the Merseyside derbies. My all-time hero is Samuel Eto’o so I followed him at Chelsea and I loved Romelu Lukaku so that led me to Everton. I would watch the derbies and say, ‘Everton can’t lose this!’, but I watched a lot of games and still remember them now.

“The 4-0 win against Manchester City stands out and the 6-2 against Bournemouth when Lukaku scored four goals.

“For me, it is a dream to have the chance to play at Goodison.”

Could Beto be the next Romelu Lukaku?

It is great to hear that Beto has always had such an affection for Everton, as a player who loves the club is exactly what they need at the moment.

The striker clearly looks up to Lukaku, who scored 87 goals for Everton, and it would be brilliant if he could emulate the Belgium international’s spell at Goodison Park.

Everton haven’t had a top striker at the club since Lukaku and there are now high expectations of Beto’s time here.