Idrissa Gana Gueye believes the qualities of Seamus Coleman – as a player, a person and a captain – are invaluable to Everton.
Coleman, who this week signed a new one-year contract extension to extend his Blues playing career into a 15th season, left a lasting impression on Gana from his initial three-year stint at Goodison Park between 2016 and 2019.
So much so, the pair stayed in regular contact during Gana's three-year spell at Paris Saint-Germain, where he helped the French giants win two Ligue 1 titles, as well as five other domestic trophies, before returning to Everton last summer.
"Everywhere I go, I find myself talking about Seamus... maybe he didn’t know that!" Senegal international Gana told evertonfc.com.
"I messaged him a lot, when I was in PSG or with the national team, I kept talking to him because I respect him so much. He really impressed me the first time I was here and, of course, he hasn’t changed.
"The first day I arrived back at Everton, I said to Amadou [Onana], ‘If you have only one guy who you know you can trust 100 per cent, it’s Seamus’… He’s that guy.
"He showed me during my first few years here, I saw him doing some things and later you would realise exactly why.
"He is a proper captain and a great player. And not only that, above all of that, above being a footballer, he is a proper human being, a great guy."
Despite being only one year younger than Coleman, Gana, now 33, says he still learns from the Everton captain – and looks to emulate his attitude and behaviour to the benefit of the Club.
"I love him! Seamus, for me, is unique," added Gana.
"Sometimes, I try to be more like him. I know I’m not perfect. Sometimes I can be sad and in those situations sometimes I keep myself to myself sometimes, rather than speaking out.
"Seamus is never like that, he always has the right words for the situation. He knows when to talk harder to bring everyone together and he knows when he doesn’t need to do that.
"He’s not just shouting in the dressing room every time, no, he talks when he needs to talk. Sometimes in football and in life people want to be loudest in the room, but Seamus talks when he feels like he needs to and he has something to say.
"It’s completely natural with him.
"I’ve never seen it in any other person I’ve met in my life."
