Midfielder Lucy Graham has signed a new contract with Everton, penning a deal until the end of June 2023.
The Scotland international joined Everton in summer 2019 and was swiftly instilled as the Blues’ on-field skipper, working alongside Club captain Dan Turner as part of a new leadership structure.
A skilful, energetic and technically accomplished midfield player, Graham enjoyed an excellent debut season in 2019/20, scoring six goals in 22 appearances in a campaign shortened due to the COVID-19 outbreak.
She hit a memorable long-range winner in Everton’s 1-0 Merseyside derby victory in front of more than 23,500 fans at Anfield and was an integral part of the side that reached the 2020 FA Cup final.
Graham, 24, has continued to be a key figure for Everton in 2020/21 as the Blues have consistently battled it out in the WSL top six.
“The Club has treated me in such a way since I’ve been here that it made signing a new contract an easy decision,” Graham told evertonfc.com.
“When you look at the direction we are going in and the ambition Everton has, it is inspiring for me to be part of this club
“We want to push on to new levels and I’m so excited about what we can achieve. We want to do better every season, which we are doing. We are well on track and I feel we are only scratching the surface of our potential.
"Domestically, we want to compete with the best sides and try to win silverware and, of course, one of our big targets will be to qualify for Europe.”
Everton manager Willie Kirk added: “I'm delighted Lucy has signed a contract extension.
“I signed her at the earliest opportunity after I came to the Club and she hasn't disappointed. I made her a very young team captain as soon as she arrived and she met that responsibility head on from day one.
“She leads well on and off the park. She is always respectful, always logical and shows humility.
“On the pitch, her assists and goals record is very good for a midfielder – and a large majority of those goal involvements have come at very important times. The ones that immediately spring to mind are the winner against Liverpool at Anfield and the equaliser against Chelsea in the FA Cup quarter-final at Goodison Park.
“Her development as a player is in line with the development of the team. The exciting thing for me is she is now being pushed every day for her place in the starting XI and this is improving her all the time.
“I'm looking forward to continuing our work together."
Everton FC
