Thierno Barry scores again as Everton win at Newcastle

Thierno Barry scored for Everton on Monday night as his side earned a deserved Premier League win at St James' Park. It was his second goal against Newcastle in five days. Last season he scored eight goals in 41 appearances, and this season he has matched that tally in just 12 games.

A regular starter for Everton

Only Erling Haaland, who has 13, has scored more Premier League goals this season in all competitions than Barry, who has eight. The 24-year-old is enjoying his best run of form since joining from Villarreal last summer. With Beto having moved to Fiorentina, Barry is Everton's only recognised senior striker, and he is currently indispensable to the club.

Everton paid £27m for a striker who grew up watching Wayne Rooney and Romelu Lukaku score for the club. His start on Merseyside was difficult. In his first 16 Everton games he had just one shot. Last month he posted a video of himself breaking down during a private training session last season. His celebration on Monday, which began with a knee slide and ended with dance moves, was a clear contrast.

Goal drew complaints from Newcastle

Speaking to Sky Sports, Barry said he had worked hard over the summer and was now seeing the results. "The season is long but I'm happy to help the team with my goals," he said. "I want to enjoy more than last season and I enjoyed my celebration so I am happy."

The strike was controversial. Newcastle manager Matthias Jaissle told BBC Sport there was "a clear foul on Fabian Schar" in the build-up to the goal.

Involved in the big chances

Barry leads the Premier League in the proportion of his team's big chances he is involved in. Before Monday's match, Everton had created 24 big chances, and Barry had been involved in 15 of them, or 62.5 per cent. He has often been criticised for his finishing, and he was guilty of a poor touch when through on goal on Monday, scuffing his shot.

His goal came from a tap-in from two yards, after he latched onto a flick-on from Jarrad Branthwaite. The chance had an expected goals value of 0.995, which made it very difficult to miss.

Former Liverpool and England defender Jamie Carragher told Sky Sports: "We know Barry misses chances, but we also know this season he keeps going and he scores goals." Manager David Moyes said: "We're thrilled he's getting the goals because you need your centre-forward to score. He has missed a few but thankfully tonight he was on the spot to get the goal."