Everton’s first month of the campaign has come and gone, and the Tofees remain unbeaten in all competitive matches, earning 4 points from 2 league matches, and advancing in the Carabao Cup. The Toffee Blues Contributors have voted, and after 4 matches, these are the players that stood out the most in the month of August.
Harrison Armstrong (T-2ND, 4 Votes)
Harrison Armstrong was a key man in the midfield in preseason, and has shown his value early on in the campaign for Everton. Despite nearly being sold to Nottingham Forest in the summer transfer window, perhaps stopped only by the traveling Evertonians at Bournemouth, he has remained a model of consistency at only 19 years old, and looks likely to be a key part of a thin Everton squad.
He started all 3 matches in the month of August, playing the full 90 minutes in all but one of them. He provided an assist for Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall’s goal against Crystal Palace, and has shown a growing desire to be a disruptive force in the midfield. This tenacity was evidenced by his winning the ball for the previously mentioned goal. While the board may have wanted to sell the young midfielder, the squad’s only Liverpool native has made a strong case for being a week in week out starter moving forward, and he is only getting better.
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall (T-2ND, 4 Votes)
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall broke onto the scene for Everton last season having been signed from Chelsea in last Summer’s transfer window. He has shown his ability in spades already this season, and looks likely to once again be an irreplaceable part of David Moyes’ midfield selection. Kiernan scored Everton’s goal of the month against Crystal Palace, a brilliant left-footed strike that stranded Dean Henderson in the Palace goal. The midfielder has been influential in the attacking third, replicating a similar impact from last season.
Across the month, he has taken 12 shots, put 4 on target, and thrown in 11 completed crosses. His ability in the final third will be massive to Everton this season with only one striker in the squad. He has seemingly built a strong chemistry with Harrison Armstrong and James Garner, and the midfield three looks likely to continue to grow alongside Hayden Hackney into one of the strongest midfields that Moyes has had to pick from in quite some time.
Thierno Barry (1ST – 12 Votes)
Cometh the hour, cometh the man. After selling Beto on transfer deadline day, and seeing a last-gasp move for Florian Balogun fall to bits at quite literally the dying hour of the transfer window, Barry has been left as the only striker in the entire Everton senior squad. While a complete failure and an indictment on the transfer window, Thierno Barry has stepped up to the plate so far, and looks full of confidence leading the line for Everton.
A brilliant hat-trick against Preston in the Carabao Cup against Preston, and another goal in the 2-0 win against Palace sees Barry with 4 goals in his 3 August matches. While he may rue some chances missed in the opening two Premier League matches, Barry looks fit, strong, and more decisive in his positioning in the final third. Some may worry about his ability to shoulder what is really an impossible load, but he has shown no lack of confidence and can-do attitude in interviews and on his socials. He has great chemistry with his attacking mates Tyrique George and Brennan Johnson, and reuniting with Jack Grealish should only serve to see him have even more chances in front of goal. A runway choice by the Toffee Blues’ Contributors for Player of the Month and rightly so, now let’s hope his form long continues for the Toffees. They will need it to.
UTFT!
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