Everton is absolutely tearing it up right now, sitting fifth in the actual table and just three points off the top after an unbeaten start that’s got everyone scratching their heads. This club, with its gleaming £800m stadium, is somehow proving that money ain’t everything in the Premier League.
David Moyes Is Cooking With Scraps, And It’s Delicious
Forget the flashy cash; this club, in a division of conspicuous consumption, actually struggled to spend. They finished low down the spending charts, even making a transfer-market profit, but guess what? They’re scripting their own underdog story. This impressive start? It feels like it’s happening *despite* some of the big shots at Hill Dickinson Stadium, and 100% *because* of David Moyes. The dude’s virtues and values? Timeless. He consistently outperforms relatively modest resources and galvanizes relatively small squads. Moyes himself summed it up, “We have tried to turn it into a positive.” While others are getting lost in spending sprees, Everton is just making the most of what they have.
Thierno Barry’s Chest: The Unlikely Hero Scoring When It Counts
After some deadline-day mishaps, Everton’s got just one striker. But for now, Thierno Barry is all they need. The man just scored his fifth goal of the season! His winner against Ipswich? Pure Thierno Barry. It was inelegant but effective, and you could say it personifies this entire Everton squad. He broke a four-game drought in the most unorthodox way imaginable. It wasn’t just James Tarkowski hitting a rare volley from 25 yards; it actually struck Barry in the chest, totally wrong-footing Ipswich keeper Christian Walton, and then just rolled in. Was Barry trying to get out of the way or reacting to turn it in? Ipswich manager Gary O’Neil lamented, “The goal is fairly unfortunate to go in off the guy’s midriff.” Deliberate or not, it ain’t winning goal of the season (Ainsley Maitland-Niles probably already has that locked up, let’s be real).
Barry thought he had a second too, glancing a header in from Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall’s corner, but VAR stepped in. An offside Brennan Johnson in front of Walton meant it was chalked off. Moyes admitted, “It is offside,” but quickly added, “The goalkeeper would not have saved the header.” Barry even headed wide from a Maitland-Niles cross, prompting Moyes to say, “He should have scored his header.”
But here’s the thing, despite the missed chances and the wild deflections, it’s an encouraging sign that Barry keeps getting into prime goalscoring positions. And it’s even more encouraging that Everton is still creating opportunities, even after selling Iliman Ndiaye. Moyes noted, “Statistically we have been making much more chances.” Today might’ve seen 21 shots with only two on target, which Moyes says “is not any good,” but that volume of “21 shots is good.” That’s exactly why he calls this start better than anyone expected. “I would have to say yes in a lot of cases,” Moyes concurred. “We have done pretty well.” While Ipswich dropped almost £200m and had Abdul Fatawu dismissed for diving, Everton is proving that heart and smarts can beat deep pockets. This team is writing their own rules, and we’re all here for the ride.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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