Thierno Barry can be the kind of striker to enable David Moyes to play his preferred tactics at Everton reckons Gavin Buckland
Thierno Barry and Bright Arrey Mbi during the UEFA Euro U21 semi-final between France and Germany on June 25, 2025 in Kosice, Slovakia
Thierno Barry and Bright Arrey Mbi during the UEFA Euro U21 semi-final between France and Germany on June 25, 2025 in Kosice, Slovakia
(Image: Daniel Derajinski/Icon Sport via Getty Images)
Thierno Barry is the kind of hardworking striker who will enable David Moyes to implement his preferred tactics and deploy younger versions of Tim Cahill, Steven Pienaar and Mikel Arteta behind him in a new-look Everton team. That’s the verdict of Everton’s official statistician Gavin Buckland, regarding the Villarreal player who has been targeted by the Blues this summer.
Everton hold a genuine interest in the 22-year-old, who scored 19 times last season – 11 of which came in La Liga – and has a release clause of around £34million. A flurry of reports on Wednesday suggested Hill Dickinson Stadium chiefs were continuing to explore a deal, though were looking to negotiate a lower fee for the forward.
Barry, who only moved to Spain from Swiss side Basel on August 21 last year, has been in action for France in the UEFA European Under-21 Championships but his side were knocked out at the semi-final stage by Germany on Wednesday, losing 3-0.
In the ECHO, Joe Thomas stated that the end of Barry’s involvement in the competition could make it easier to move a deal forward, while it also now appears his club manager will not stand in the way of an exit.
Speaking to Futbol Fantasy via El Larguero, his Villarreal coach Marcelino appeared braced for the loss of the youngster and prepared to accept it rather than demand club chiefs put their foot down. He said: “If Villarreal believes that, with the investment they’ve made and what they can receive in just one year, plus the performance they’ve given, this transaction should be carried out, and if the player himself wants to look for a new destination, then we accept it and will look for solutions so that the team doesn’t weaken.”
During his first spell as Everton manager, when he steered the club to nine top-eight finishes, including a highest ever Premier League placing of fourth in 2004/05, Moyes broke the club transfer record three times in consecutive years on strikers as he signed James Beattie (£6m from Southampton in 2005); Andrew Johnson (£8.6m from Crystal Palace in 2006) and Ayegbeni Yakubu (£11.25m from Middlesbrough in 2007). However, it was the three attacking midfielders behind the frontmen, each acquired for relatively modest fees who often thrived in his Blues’ sides, namely Cahill (£1.5m from Millwall in 2004); Arteta (£2m from Real Sociedad in 2005) and Pienaar (£2m from Borussia Dortmund in 2008).
Buckland believes the potential acquisition of Barry could implement that strategy again for the Scot by the Mersey waterfront. Speaking on the latest edition of the ECHO’s Royal Blue podcast, he said: “Thierno Barry appears to be that type of David Moyes striker who will go out wide and will let people push up from midfield. He’ll do a lot of running without necessarily being a 20-goals-a-season striker, sort of like a Michail Antonio figure (that the manager had at West Ham).
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“That’s an interesting one really. The only thing I’d say about Moyes is that in England in the 21st century, he’s probably been the best procurer of defenders in terms of buying them young, turning them into internationals and selling them on for big fees.
“I can’t think of many managers who have done it better than Moyes. He’s bought great midfielders too, but strikers have been his Achilles heel.
“He’s had a hell of a lot of strikers in his career and while he had the Yak for a bit, he’s not a manager who builds a team around a 20-25-goals-a-season striker. He builds around a 10-goal-a-season striker who will probably do a hell of a lot of running, who will open up the channels.
“His man offensive bit on the pitch is the three positions behind the striker. It was at Everton, and it was at West Ham, and I think that’s what he wants, and I think with Barry, it will be more around the role he plays for the team, rather than the number of goals he scores.”