David Moyes believes patience is vital if we are to see the best of Apostolos Vellios, and he will slowly flood the talented youngster into the starting XI.
The bargain buy from the Greek Second Division outfit Iraklis is already way ahead of schedule, having earned two Premier League starts and three goals from the bench within a year of his arrival.
Given that Vellios is still only 19 and adapting to massive cultural changes – both on and off the pitch – his progress is all the more impressive.
That makes it all too easy for expectations to be blown out of proportion and Moyes is eager to carefully manage his fledgling career, with just the right amount of exposure to first-team action.
“He is doing well. He has now got three goals for us coming from the bencn. His impact coming on as a sub has been quite good and at the moment that might be his way, suggest the Toffees boss.
Moyes goes on to add that the 19-year-old is still getting used to life in the UK, “He is still getting used to the Premier League, the speed of it and doing the right things often enough.
“I thought he finished his goal well the other week (against Bolton). Tim knocked it down, it wasn’t an easy finish but he stuck it in, which is what he is good at.”
Indeed, Moyes has been impressed with Vellios’ finishing and desire to get into good goalscoring positions – a trait he is showing more of in training according to the Manager.
“He can score when he gets a chance in the box. He is improving all the time. I see him in training and there are times I think he is slacking and he needs to work a bit harder, do better and protect the ball a bit better.
“We are working with him all the time and I hope we can continue to improve him. I think if you look at most of the goals that are scored they are either in the six-yard box or penalty area, there are a few scored from outside the box but if you want to be a centre forward then you have to accept the fact that you need to get in the middle of the box to get the goals.
“He is a good finisher, he is tidy, he gets across defenders and you do tend to find that he is in and around the right areas to score,” concluded Moyes.