England manager Thomas Tuchel should seriously consider calling up Everton midfielder Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall to his squad.
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall has ruled himself out of being called up for Ireland, explaining that it’s his dream to represent England.
“I have spoken about it with Seamus (Coleman). I told him where my head is at and that is that I see myself as English and the biggest dream of mine would be to play for England,” Dewsbury-Hall told Everton TV.
Indeed, there is significant competition ahead of Dewsbury-Hall at the moment, however, there are a couple of key reasons why he should be right in the mix for the November camp.
Everton midfielder Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall against Roma.
Photo by Jan Kruger/Getty Images
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall’s stats are phenomenal
Ben Foster said Dewsbury-Hall looks a million dollars following his sensational performance against Wolves earlier this season.
The 27-year-old has only scored one and assisted as many this term, but the statistics tell a much bigger story.
According to FBref data, the Everton star actually ranks in the top 10 per cent in Europe for expected assists per 90 compared to his positional peers.
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That suggests he’s one of the most creative players across the top five leagues at the moment and is unlucky not to have significantly more assists.
Dewsbury-Hall also sits in the top 16 per cent for tackles per 90, and the majority of them have been won high up the pitch as he’s often one of the first pressers in David Moyes’ system.
His ability to cover ground and win the ball back in dangerous areas, paired with his poise in the final third, makes him a really viable option for Tuchel.
There aren’t too many players like Dewsbury-Hall, perhaps Gibbs-White is the only one of a similar profile, and he’s not been particularly inspiring this year.
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall vs Morgan Gibbs-White
For Dewsbury-Hall to get into the England squad, he’ll probably have to displace Nottingham Forest playmaker Gibbs-White.
So, with that said, let’s take a look at how some of their statistics compare so far this season.
Stats per 90 Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall Morgan Gibbs-White
Expected assists 0.30 0.17
Pass completion 80.2% 79.7%
Progressive passes 5.12 5.81
Tackles 1.81 1.15
Clearances 1.39 1.07
Gibbs-White, who was in the most recent England squad, is actually behind Dewsbury-Hall in four out of five of those statistics.
The Toffees playmaker trumps him in the offensive and defensive data points, and yet it seems as though Tuchel hasn’t even considered him.
That should change come November 7th, when the next squad is announced.