Everton have had a number of players who have massively benefited their European push so far in the Premier League this season.
But former top-flight striker Troy Deeney believes that there is one star in particular who is the heartbeat of David Moyes’ side, who look rampant at present.
Everton have won four of their last five Premier League games, with all of those wins coming with clean sheets, barring a bizarre 4-1 loss to Newcastle United.
And Deeney believes that summer signing Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall has been the real ticking point of their squad, with his performances seeing him labelled as the ‘signing of the season’.
Everton midfielder Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall.
Photo by Richard Martin-Roberts – CameraSport via Getty Images
Troy Deeney believes Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall is arguably the Premier League’s best signing of the summer
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall signed for Everton in the summer transfer window from Chelsea, keen to prove a point on Merseyside after receiving less of an opportunity at Chelsea than he would have liked.
He was questioned earlier in the campaign, but he’s recently burst into life at the Hill Dickinson Stadium under David Moyes.
Five goal contributions in his last five Premier League games have seen Everton at the peak of their powers, playing in a midfield role thanks to the suspension of Idrissa Gana Gueye following his red card against Manchester United.
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Everton midfielder Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall.
Photo by Richard Martin-Roberts – CameraSport via Getty Images
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And Troy Deeney has called Dewsbury-Hall ‘one of the signings of the season’ for his contributions in midfield.
Deeney told BBC Sport: “Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall. Is he the signing of the season? He has been fantastic.
“Not only is he scoring, he is pulling the strings and has become the heartbeat of this new-look Everton team under David Moyes, who can get another gear out of these players as they did against Nottingham Forest.”
If Dewsbury-Hall can keep those performances up, he could well be one of the best deals to have got over the line this season.
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall has something that previous Everton midfielders simply don’t have
Everton have long lacked a central midfielder of Dewsbury-Hall’s ilk.
James Garner is a strong defensive-minded player in the engine room, though he can be somewhat limited in the final third despite his set-piece ability.
Other players in the past such as Amadou Onana and Abdoulaye Doucoure have both been specialists in one area, but unable to fulfil other responsibilities.
Has Dewsbury-Hall just become Everton’s most important player? 🤔
An overview of Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall's stats in Everton's win over Bournemouth.
Credit: Getty Images/Alex Burstow
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Dewsbury-Hall can play in any midfield role, and that in itself will be so crucial to Moyes if Everton are still to be challenging for European football come the end of the season.
Two tricky fixtures await in Chelsea away at the weekend, followed by the visit of Arsenal to Merseyside the week after – and if Dewsbury-Hall can perform against the London duo, he’ll rank among the top Premier League performers in his area.
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