Everton returned to winning ways against Bournemouth last night as they produced a magnificent away performance on the south coast.
Jack Grealish grabbed the headlines with his second-half winner, but Everton had a number of Man of the Match-worthy performances across the pitch.
Tim Iroegbunam was absolutely excellent in the middle of the park and certainly responded well to the criticism he received after the Newcastle defeat.
Just look what it means! Using only emojis, how would you rate the signing of Dewsbury-Hall?
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall earned rave reviews, too, and has been proven correct about something he said back in October.
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall is much better as a central midfielder
Back in October, Dewsbury-Hall was actually going through a tough patch and was receiving a fair bit of criticism.
Dewsbury-Hall then came out and said his best position is as a number eight, which Moyes initially seemed to ignore.
“I can play all positions in midfield, but I’d say my strongest point is probably in box-to-box, number eight,” the 27-year-old said.
But, in recent weeks, the former Chelsea star has been deployed as a box-to-box midfielder, and it’s certainly paid off.
As evinced by his statistics below, Dewsbury-Hall was dominant in the middle of the park, showing a defensive side to his game that Toffees fans haven’t really seen.
Has Dewsbury-Hall just become Everton’s most important player? 🤔
David Moyes wowed by Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall vs Bournemouth
Speaking post-match, Moyes heaped praise on Dewsbury-Hall’s performance in a deeper role and was pleased he was still able to impact the game going forward.
“He played really well and I thought he made a difference in the second half,” the Scotsman explained.
“The game got a little bit stretched and a little bit transitional, with both teams having a bit of a go and I thought, ‘My goodness if we’re not careful this might suit them better here.'”
His versatility is SO important! Where do you think his best position is? 👏
“I’ve said before, my most natural position is a box-to-box number eight. I’ll play anywhere the manager wants me, but most of my career I’ve played as a number eight, so I feel comfortable there.
“I can defend, I can drive forward with the ball, I can attack, I like running. I can do pretty much anything you need me to do, so I feel comfortable there.”
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall shares his thoughts on playing in a deeper midfield role.
Moyes continued: “So, yeah, (Kiernan) did a great job, playing a little bit deeper, but I thought he still was the one who was probably going to try and open them up with a pass.”
Perhaps even when the injured players are back, and the suspended Idrissa Gana Gueye returns, Dewsbury-Hall will continue to play in his new role.
It also allows Iliman Ndiaye a bit more room to operate in a central role.
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