Everton youngster Gerard Deulofeu plans to emulate Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo

Everton star Gerard Deulofeu wants to emulate the career trajectory of Cristiano Ronaldo. The 21-year-old attacker has revealed he hopes to transform himself from being a tricky winger into a goalscoring forward, as Ronaldo has done.

Deulofeu, who signed a permanent deal at Goodison Park during the summer of 2015, has admitted he would like to follow the path set out by the former world player of the year. "Maybe little things yes we are alike, but we're different in a lot of others," he said, according to The Sun.

"Cristiano has a lot to his game – he's good in the air, his shooting is perfect, his left foot is perfect. And he's more of a striker than a winger now, a number nine. I'm a winger now but in the future I want to play more in the middle."

Deulofeu, who joined Everton from Barcelona, explained he wants to play more centrally because it would mean he has more chance of scoring goals. "When you're there you have a lot more opportunities to score more. I would like to do it like him, though, start wide and go into the middle, as a number 10 or nine. At Barca B, I played number nine and think I played well. If you are there, you have more chances to make a bigger impact," the Everton star said.

"I don't say you're not involved on the wing, or I don't like it, because I do. For me it's possible to play number 10 or nine or winger – but in the future I want to play more in the middle."

Deulofeu's Everton side have failed to match pre-season expectations so far this campaign, with the club 12th in the Premier League. However, the young Spaniard has been one of their brightest sparks, proving eight assists in the league.