A look back at Leighton Baines’ 400 games for Everton

In his twelfth year on Merseyside, Leighton Baines remains one of the Everton fan favourites even though his stellar career is slowly winding to an end. Monday night against Newcastle, the Goodison Park faithful got a chance to show the veteran their appreciation as he marked his 400th appearance for the Toffees in all competitions.

Here’s a quick summary of some the numbers from his tenure at Everton:

• Transferred from Wigan Athletic in August 2007 for £6 million
• Played under five different Everton managers - David Moyes, Roberto Martinez, David Unsworth, Ronald Koeman, Sam Allardyce
• 400 games played, 379 starts and 21 substitute appearances
• Scored 38 goals and 65 assists, including 26 penalties out of 29 taken
• Featured in 331 Premier League games, starting 315 times, 29 goals and 57 assists
• Everton average 1.53 points per Premier League game with Baines in the XI
• Baines has picked up 34 Premier League cautions, but has never been sent off
• He has 30 England senior caps, with 1 goal scored

Photo by Stephen Pond/Getty Images

The Kirkby-born player was a Liverpool fan as a child before committing to the Toffees as a teenager, but has always been considered a Blue by the fans. This was never more visible than late on in Martinez’s tenure when the Spaniard rebuked Baines for criticizing the lack of team chemistry, and fans unfurled the huge banner shown above, at an away game no less.

Speaking to evertonfc.com after being presented with a plaque for reaching the 400-game milestone, Baines attributed is longevity to two key factors -

“Part of it comes down to lifestyle, the way you live and the things you do. There’s luck involved as well and you’re going to get some injuries but I’ve never had any major setbacks at crucial times.

“I suppose I’ve been lucky also with the fact I’ve had managers who have believed in me and given me the opportunity to play, and through good and bad times they persisted with me.

“A lot of it comes down to things like that - timing and luck.”

Baines is third on the list of Evertonians with the most Premier League appearances, his 331 behind Tim Howard - 354 and Leon Osman - 352. Unlike the other two though, he plans on getting his coaching badges whenever he hangs up his boots.

The 33-year-old’s current deal with the Blues runs through till the end of the 2018-19 season, but with age slowing down his legs, it’s very unlikely he stays on with Everton unless in a backup capacity.

Everton is renowned throughout the country for the stellar work done in the community, and Baines has played his part as ambassador very well, working with numerous different charities, from children’s hospitals and graffiti workshops, to mental health initiatives and other local social causes.

Away from the pitch, Baines is an intensely shy introvert who tends to stay out of the media limelight. He loves reading and music, is a decent guitar player in his own right and a good friend of musician Miles Kane. The soft-spoken but easily excitable Baines is happily married to Rachel and a father of three children, and can be seen on his days off walking around the streets of Liverpool with his collar pulled up high, dabbling in his latest hobby of photography.

And finally, it would be remiss of us to carry a piece on Baines without showing you all his different hairstyles over the years.

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• Leighton Baines of Everton in action during the Barclays Premier League match betweeen Derby County and Everton at Pride Park on October 28, 2007 in Derby, England. Photo by Bryn Lennon/Getty Images
• Leighton Baines of Everton in action during Barclays Premier League match between Everton and Sunderland at Goodison Park on December 28, 2008 in Liverpool, England. Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images
• Leighton Baines of Everton on the ball during the Barclays Premier League match between Everton and Burnley at Goodison Park on December 28, 2009 in Liverpool, England. Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images
• Leighton Baines of Everton in action during the Barclays Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and Everton at White Hart Lane on October 23, 2010 in London, England. Photo by Richard Heathcote/Getty Images
• Leighton Baines of Everton in action during the pre season friendly match between Everton and Villarreal at Goodison Park on August 5, 2011 in Liverpool, England. Photo by Clive Brunskill/Getty Images
• Leighton Baines of Everton in action during the Barclays Premier League match between Everton and Liverpool at Goodison Park on October 28, 2012 in Liverpool, England. Photo by Chris Brunskill/Getty Images
• Leighton Baines of Everton in action during the Barclays Premier League match between Everton and Newcastle United at Goodison Park on September 30, 2013 in Liverpool, England. Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images
• Leighton Baines of Everton in action during the Barclays Premier League match between Everton and Swansea City at Goodison Park on November 1, 2014 in Liverpool, England. Photo by Clive Brunskill/Getty Images
• Leighton Baines of Everton during their Capital One Cup Quarter Final at Riverside Stadium on December 1, 2015 in Middlesbrough, England. Photo by Nigel Roddis/Getty Images
• Leighton Baines of Everton celebrates as he scores their first and equalising goal from the penalty spot during the Premier League match between Everton and Manchester United at Goodison Park on December 4, 2016 in Liverpool, England. Photo by Clive Brunskill/Getty Images
• Leighton Baines of Everton during the Premier League match between Everton and Southampton at Goodison Park on January 2, 2017 in Liverpool, England. Photo by Gareth Copley/Getty Images
• Photo by Alex Livesey/Getty Images