Everton correspondent for The Athletic Patrick Boyland was full of praise for Stanley Mills after the Toffees starlet scored for the U21s away at Harrogate Town on Tuesday night.

The Lowdown: Penalty shootout win

The Goodison Park outfit's U21s won 4-2 on penalties against League Two Harrogate in the Papa John's Trophy after a 1-1 draw in 90 minutes.

Mills had put the visitors in front, and the captain also scored his penalty in the shootout, wrapping up an impressive overall performance.

The Latest: Mills praised

Taking to Twitter, Boyland praised Mills after he scored with his weaker foot, calling his finish 'brilliant':

"Brilliant goal from Stan Mills to put Everton U21s ahead! Struck low and hard into bottom corner from edge of area - on supposedly weaker foot too."

[web_stories_embed url="https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/everton-news-8/" title="Everton news!" poster="" width="360" height="600" align="none"]

The Verdict: Captain's performance

Mills put in a true captain's performance, as he guided his young team to an impressive victory against league opposition.

Aside from his well-taken goal, and the penalty that he scored in the shootout, the 18-year-old won three of his duels while recording one successful dribble, clearance and tackle a piece, also creating two chances for his teammates in a dominant display (SofaScore).

Having already made his senior debut in the 1-0 win away at Fleetwood Town in the Carabao Cup back in August, Mills will be hoping that his impressive performances for the U21s will be catching the eye of Frank Lampard, and so he will want to be given more opportunities in the first team.

Nonetheless, the Englishman played a key part in the win, as the young Toffees returned to Finch Farm with smiles on their faces.