Former Everton captain Alan Stubbs has cautioned Thierno Barry that he must continue finding the net after the £27million striker scored his first goal for the club in Saturday's 3-0 win over Nottingham Forest. The 23-year-old ended a 17-match drought with a cool finish before half-time, having racked up 737 minutes and 19 shots without a goal.
Stubbs, a lifelong Evertonian who made 193 appearances for the Blues, told the ECHO: 'For Thierno it’s a huge moment. When that goal went in, you could feel not just excitement but emotion. David Moyes played it brilliantly after the game, saying he needs to do that more regularly if he wants to be the number nine at Everton. That’s exactly right.'
The former Villarreal forward has seen performances improve with more game time, but Stubbs stressed the demands of playing as a lone striker under Moyes. 'There’s no guarantee of staying in the team unless you’re doing your job – and his job is to score goals. The expectation for that role is higher than anywhere else because of how Moyes wants you to work hard and be in the right place.'
Stubbs added that Barry had been too desperate, often running into wrong positions. 'He needs to remember that most goals come between the two posts. Hopefully he can build on this now. I’m not expecting six in six, but if he can start putting chances away more regularly, that bodes well for Everton.'
Everton travel to Chelsea on Saturday, sitting one point behind the Blues in fifth place.
