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<\/p>\nHarrison Armstrong has opened up on life at Everton, his time on loan at Preston North End and how club’s academy ensured he built the right mentality<\/p>\n
Harrison Armstrong before Everton’s FA Cup defeat to Sunderland(Image: (Jess Hornby\/Getty Images))<\/p>\n
Harrison Armstrong believes Everton are a club moving in the right direction and opened up on his recent loan spell at Preston North End. As David Moyes<\/a> celebrated a year in charge of the Blues at the weekend, it has been a year of transition for the club.<\/p>\n A Premier League<\/a> table covering the 62-year-old\u2019s 12 months at the helm reveals Everton<\/a> to be sitting in tenth position, having garnered 60 points from 40 matches. And even though the Blues have only won one of their last seven games in all competitions, Armstrong believes the club remain on track to get to where they want to be.<\/p>\n \u201cI think you can see that with the club changes at the club and the direction the club is going,” he said. “It\u2019s definitely a project that people are starting to look at and starting to appreciate a lot more.<\/p>\n READ MORE: James Garner sends demand to Everton team-mates and makes Harrison Armstrong statement<\/a>READ MORE: How Hollywood icon forged unique Everton bond that led to one of Goodison’s final cheers<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cThe club is definitely going in the right direction and I think what the fans are doing, the people at the club and the players, it\u2019s all really positive and it feels like we\u2019re back on track to getting to where we want to be.\u201d<\/p>\n After starting the season as a member of Moyes\u2019 first-team squad, Armstrong joined North End on deadline day in the summer. The 18-year-old midfielder went on to make 17 Championship appearances for the Lilywhites before being recalled by Everton<\/a> earlier this month.<\/p>\n And reflecting on his time at Deepdale, the England youth international said: “It was really good. I learned a lot. I\u2019ve been fortunate enough to be at two really good clubs on loan so far in Preston and Derby last season.<\/p>\n \u201cIn a short time, they\u2019ve taught me a lot and Preston was definitely somewhere where I thought I really showed what I was capable of.<\/p>\n \u201cI know there is definitely more to my game to improve on and that I can show people but really enjoyed it there and it helped me. I felt like the fans and the people there really took to me.\u201d<\/p>\n Harrison Armstrong in action for Preston North End during his loan spell with the club(Image: )<\/p>\n Before Armstrong continued: \u201cWhen you go away on loan, you’re sort of thrown in at the deep end straight away. Even in training, you’re tested by the lads.<\/p>\n \u201cThey want to see what you’re made of. And, yeah, it\u2019s brought new challenges that I hadn\u2019t had so far, so it\u2019s really helped me.<\/p>\n \u201cI think I\u2019ve matured both on and off the pitch from having time away. It\u2019s allowed me to see different aspects of my game and see what I can improve.<\/p>\n \u201cYour\u2019e playing against some really good opposition, different styles and different teams, so I\u2019ve certainly taken a lot from both of the loan spells I\u2019ve had. Now my aim is to keep progressing.\u201d<\/p>\n Royal Blue newsletter – subscribe now The Royal Blue podcast logo(Image: )<\/p>\n The Liverpool ECHO has launched the Royal Blue newsletter<\/a> – the latest way to get the inside track on the Blues.<\/p>\n Created by Everton correspondent Joe Thomas, it will provide in-depth insight on the major talking points – on and off the pitch – through an exciting, historic period for the club as the first team moves to the Hill Dickinson Stadium and Everton Women enter Goodison Park.<\/p>\n The idea is to step away from the treadmill of press conferences and player ratings and instead offer a glimpse behind the scenes at the club – and on Joe’s travels up and down the country following Everton.<\/p>\n Royal Blue is delivered to your inbox every Wednesday and completely free.<\/p>\n To take a look and subscribe, check it out here<\/a><\/p>\n Armstrong has played in a number of roles in midfield, but when asked what his preferred position is, he revealed: \u201cI think different positions, different formations and different styles can all suit me at different times.<\/p>\n \u201cI can be effective going forward, but I can also be effective defensively as well. It just all depends how the game goes.<\/p>\n \u201cI can adapt and I like to do a little bit of both, attacking and defensively, so maybe like a box-to-box but I\u2019m happy to go wide and stay forward a little more, or even as a six.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve played in different roles and I feel comfortable in all of them. I\u2019d say I\u2019m quite versatile and I\u2019ve got different varieties in my game that I can give and that can be effective at times.\u201d<\/p>\n Harrison Armstrong during the FA Cup third round match between Everton and Sunderland at Hill Dickinson Stadium on January 10, 2026(Image: Emma Simpson\/Everton FC Official Photography Library\/SmartFrame)<\/p>\n After joining Everton aged five, Armstrong made his senior debut against Tottenham Hotspur in August 2024 and he believes the club’s academy ensured he built the right mentality.<\/p>\n \u201cI think being in the academy from so young, they instil lots of personality traits and, you know, how morals of what an Everton player should be,” he told the Everton matchday programme.<\/p>\n \u201cI think each person always has their own individual traits, but [the Everton morals were] always hard work and competing.<\/p>\n \u201cI think I’ve kept that throughout the age groups, and I think I’ve taken to that more than other things and it’s really helped me.\u201d<\/p>\n Sky Sports discounted Premier League and EFL package<\/p>\n This article contains affiliate links, we will receive a commission on any sales we generate from it. 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