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My Everton #82: What I Tell My Saudi Friends

Everton and technical partner hummel are proud to collaborate to present My Everton, a weekly series of first-hand accounts describing the most-treasured memories of fans, players, and staff both past and present.

Got an entry? We'd love to hear it – and there are exclusive prizes for the best fan submissions, including VIP tickets to First Team matches, invitations to watch training at Finch Farm, signed merchandise and discount on hummel.net. Submit via email to content@evertonfc.com.

I am Aziz, a lad from Riyadh, the capital city of Saudi Arabia. 

I play football and I’ve enjoyed watching Premier League football since 2014. However, in 2017, the game between Everton and Manchester City at Goodison Park, which ended with a 4-0 Toffees win, changed everything for me.

To be honest, it’s difficult to articulate why it had such a significant impact on me. The way we played with a such high intensity while being the underdog against a side going for the league title was a big part of it. Then, of course, scoring four goals is something fabulous. 

That day really built a passion for me towards Everton.

The more I learned, the more I loved. I saw Alan Ball’s quote, 'Once Everton has touched you, nothing will be the same', and it encapsulated it perfectly.

Since then, I’ve been to Goodison twice. The first one was a stadium tour which was a great experience, and the second was a match at Goodison Park.

For this, I travelled from my home city to Liverpool for the first match of this season against Chelsea. Supporting the lads and being able to surround myself with Evertonians made it unforgettable for me, despite the defeat. It was a special day to experience the Goodison atmosphere and be with like-minded people who shared this passion.

At home in Riyadh, I keep up to date by watching every Everton game on television and I follow Everton news by reading as many articles as I can and scrolling through Twitter.

Some of my friends and colleagues are surprised when they find out I'm an Evertonian. They ask, 'Why not follow a club playing Champions League?', but that's not what's really important. The most important thing is identifying with a club and I certainly found that with Everton.

It has been a tough season, but I have got a lot of faith in Sean Dyche. Sure, it's a difficult moment but Everton is one of the biggest clubs in England and I believe we will one day get back to where we belong - fighting towards the top of the table.

I'll always be here supporting the team. As we say, 'Once a Blue, always a Blue'.

By Abdulaziz Aldawish, Evertonian

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