Bobby Vincent, Senior Chelsea correspondent for Football.London, runs the rule over Everton's latest signing, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall was a really popular figure at Stamford Bridge and he can excel at Everton. That’s the verdict of Bobby Vincent, Senior Chelsea correspondent for Football.London, the ECHO’s sister title in the capital.
The midfielder joined Chelsea from Leicester City for £30million on July 2, 2024, but after just a single season in west London, he was snapped up by David Moyes for an undisclosed fee understood to be an initial £25million. On assessing the Nottingham-born player’s time at Chelsea, Vincent told the ECHO: “It was a bit of a strange time. It was a very successful time in terms of he won two trophies, but on a personal note, not so much.
“He obviously followed Enzo Maresca from Leicester City so he would have been expecting more minutes, but he came into a very competitive Chelsea squad. His contribution in the Conference League cannot be understated, though (he played 15 games, netting four times, opposed to 13 matches without scoring in the Premier League).
“The most impressive thing from his time at Chelsea was his temperament. He never once moaned about his playing time – and he did loads of interviews. Chelsea would often put him up for media duty because he is a fantastic speaker and a really nice guy but not once, even when probing him to try and say something, did he complain about his lack of minutes.
“Considering Chelsea are getting the majority of the fee they paid for him back, it is seen as okay business.
“If they had made a huge loss on him, then fans would be disappointed. But it’s just one of those situations, really; a player comes in, it doesn’t go as well as either side would have hoped, and he leaves for the best interest of all parties.”
Chelsea have decided to let the 26-year-old go after just one season though, so does Vincent think he could be a good signing for Everton? He said: “I do indeed. If he can get regular game time – and I assume he will given the fee – then I believe he could excel.
“He has so much more to offer in the Premier League and he knows that more than anyone. He did make the right decision by leaving Chelsea.”
Just where might Dewsbury-Hall fit into Moyes’ team then? While the obvious answer seems to be as an alternative to either Idrissa Gueye or James Garner in the engine room, Vincent explains he can also fulfil other midfield roles. He said: “He’s very versatile.
“During his short time at Stamford Bridge, he played on both wings, in the No.10 and in the double pivot. We never really got to see Dewsbury-Hall at his best and that could be partially down to not knowing where he is most effective.
“He never stops running. He’s an intelligent player when his side are in possession, too, and often picks up space between defence and midfield.
“He quite often ran in behind the defence which never really worked at Chelsea because a short pass is usually preferred.”
As already alluded to, Dewsbury-Hall is an affable character, and photographs of his unveiling at Everton appear to suggest as much so just what is his personality like? Vincent said: “He’s such a nice guy. I met him for the first time last summer in the USA.
“He had just signed for Chelsea and it was his first media opportunity. We were told before going in that he’s a nice guy and that proved true.
“He took time to shake every one of us journalist’s hands and introduce himself. We then had five or so minutes just speaking to him casually before getting into the interview.
“He’s a really nice guy but he’s also the ultimate professional. He seemed to be a really popular figure in the Chelsea dressing room as well.”