What fuels the rise of the hottest young striker in England? Ability, certainly. Confidence and the faith of a top manager are also high up there. Now to that list we can add Maltesers.
It might be an odd superstition but Dominic Calvert-Lewin, the Everton striker whose red-hot form should win him a first senior cap on Thursday, likes to munch his way through a bag of the chocolates before a game. It is a quirk that is serving him well.
Calvert-Lewin’s blistering start to the campaign, with nine goals in six appearances, has helped propel Everton to their best start since the 1890s but, more than anything, it has shown he is well and truly ready for the big time.