Jack Rodwell has laid bare his intention to become a first team regular at Everton this year stating "I'm not a kid anymore".
The 20-year-old, who made his first team bow four years ago, endured a frustrating season last year after picking up a series of niggling injuries which cleared toward the end of the campaign.
Rodwell will not have played as much football as he would have liked at the U-21 European Championships this summer either after England failed to progress past the group stages.
But he says he is now ready to put the frustrations of the last term behind him and get on with commanding a regular place in the Blues' starting eleven.
He said: "It was disappointing the way it (the Euros) went but we'll take the experience from it because we're all young players
"There was high expectation and there was hype about us and we didn't achieve what we expected but that's football.
"There are a lot of lads who can play in the next tournament so it's good experience.
"But now it's a massive season for me.
"I've got to try and establish myself. I'm not a kid any more and I want to be a regular."
The competition for a place in the middle of Everton's talented midfield will be stiff again this year.
Marouane Fellaini has already played his first game after recovering from a lengthy spell on the sidelines with a foot injury and Mikel Arteta too, heads into the season injury free.
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Dave, Merseyside around 10 months, 1 week ago