Joe Thomas delivers his Everton verdict as Thierno Barry impresses in win over Fulham
David Moyes had words with Thierno Barry when he was taken off(Image: Getty Images)
Everton took a valuable three points from a deserved win over Fulham but the biggest victory may have been the progress made in the search for a striker.
Thierno Barry did not last the full 90 minutes but the decision to withdraw him before the end was an easy one given it allowed all four stands to rise in appreciation. He left Sunderland looking devastated after his terrible miss proved to be the turning point in a game Everton lost control of. Five days later he departed the stage a hero.
The 23-year-old was a menace against Fulham. He caused centre backs Joachim Andersen and Calvin Bassey problems through the entire 79 minutes he spent on the pitch. The summer signing battled to get in front of the pair, chased lost causes and ensured he was not bullied out of the match. Crucially, he not only looked a threat, but he provided a focal point that Everton have been missing so far this season, showing control and intelligence to knit attacks with those around him.
OPINION
Chris Beesley
The France youth international thought he had finally kickstarted his Blues career when he finished from close range in the first half, only for the offside flag to halt a celebration that felt like a release for an embattled striker and a fanbase desperate for their hope in his ability to be converted into belief. That was one of three disallowed Everton goals in a game the hosts could have been out of sight in long before Michael Keane took the anxiety out of the closing stages.
While Barry did not quite have his big moment, he was a big factor in this win. Highlights included his clever, chested pass into the path of Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and the attack in which he made a fool of Andersen twice before, frustratingly, falling over by the corner flag.
Of real importance was that he stood out as a vital part in a functioning team. On Monday, he looked isolated as he dealt with his frustrations – the pitch and the dugout looked like a lonely place for him.
Fast forward to Saturday afternoon and, before the stadium stood for the Last Post ahead of the Remembrance game, Jack Grealish, Iliman Ndiaye, Keane and Vitalii Mykolenko lined up to embrace him, one-by-one. As he walked off the pitch nearly two hours later, Idrissa Gueye chased him down to share a moment with the forward. David Moyes, who had demanded accountability from his young star but placed the faith in him to start so soon after the disappointment in the north east, shared a few close words on the touchline.
This was almost the perfect afternoon for Moyes. It felt as though there was an exaggerated significance to the match after a run of games in which Everton had little to show from a flurry of games that inspired frustration. Everton lost to Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City and drew at Sunderland but put themselves in positions to claim far more from those games. The struggle had been turning good periods into match-winning performances.
Against Fulham, they finally did that. Marco Silva enjoyed a good record as an away manager at Goodison Park but his side rarely contested this match. The former Everton boss admitted as much after the game, saying: “We got what we deserved from the game, definitely.”
Fulham would have been lucky to have entered the break level after two disallowed goals – Barry’s followed by James Tarkowski’s volley being ruled out for offside – a good Bernd Leno save from a James Garner free-kick – and with Sasa Lukic still on the pitch after avoiding a second yellow for clearing out Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, one of many in Royal Blue who had an excellent game.
Fulham were not quite that fortunate though and there was a collective sigh of relief amid the celebrations of 50,000 Blues when Gueye poked in from close range in first half stoppage time.
Dewsbury-Hall became the third Everton player to have his celebrations cut short – Barry offside in the build up this time – and when that was followed by the only spell of sustained pressure from Fulham – the nerves intensified inside the stadium.
Moyes helped to diffuse it when Tim Iroegbunam, introduced for Jake O’Brien to allow James Garner to move to right back, was replaced by Merlin Rohl after a yellow card limited his aggression, controlled as it had been. Even better for Moyes was that, after Barry came off, Beto showed urgency and positivity in the lead up to the corner that punctured the tension inside the ground. Again, it was not a striker who delivered in front of goal – instead it was the familiar sight of Keane rising to meet Dewsbury-Hall’s corner. But Moyes had called for goals from all over the pitch ahead of this game, and his central midfielder, then his centre back, delivered.
The result is that for the third time this season Everton signed off before an international break with three points. And after several weeks of restlessness within some sections of the fanbase, they ended the game just three points of the Champions League places, such is the tight nature of the Premier League this season – a point Moyes has been keen to stress amid the impact of recent results on Everton’s position.