Season › 2024-25 › News Thierno Barry becomes the first of many summer arrivals for Everton Anjishnu Roy 08/07/2025 37comments | Jump to last Thierno Barry is set to be the new striker for the Blues after Everton secured his move from Villarreal for a reported fee of €32.5m plus bonuses. Barry has become the first of many new faces to join David Moyes’s side this summer. Born in Lyon, France, Barry has gone from playing in the fifth division in France to playing in the Premier League in just four years. He has spent a season each in Belgium, Switzerland, and Spain with Beveren, Basel, and Villarreal respectively. The search for a striker has been a priority for the Blues following the departures of Armando Broja and Dominic Calvert-Lewin. David Moyes had insisted on bringing in a new Number 9 to elevate his side’s performance inside the opposition box. While their defensive prowess was a standout feature of the side last season, Everton were poor in front of goal. They scored only 42 goals in 38 league games last season – the lowest of any of the clubs that were not relegated. Iliman Ndiaye with 11 and Beto with 10 were the top scorers for the club across all competitions last season. While Liam Delap was the initial target for the club, attention shifted quickly to Barry once the former Ipswich Town striker opted for Chelsea. Although the 22-year-old had a €40m release clause in his contract, the Toffees were reluctant to trigger that option and remained in discussions with Villarreal over negotiating a lesser fee. Contacts were also complicated by Barry’s participation in the U21 European Championships. Barry featured in every game for his national team, but came off the bench in four of the five games. He scored one goal in his side’s run to the last four before France were eliminated in the semi-finals by eventual runners-up Germany. He’s yet to make his debut for the men’s senior French national team. Barry scored 11 goals in 37 appearances in his debut campaign for the Yellow Submarine and helped them qualify for the UEFA Champions League as they finished 5th in La Liga last season. Reader Comments (37) Note: the following content is not moderated or vetted by the site owners at the time of submission. Comments are the responsibility of the poster. Disclaimer () Mike Gaynes 1 Posted 09/07/2025 at 16:17:07 Welcome, young man. You look great in blue. Neil Thomas 3 Posted 09/07/2025 at 16:19:25 I think this is going to be a cracking buy. Fast, strong, tall, and a skilful player, I think he will terrorise defenders. And hes a good age and wanting to learn. And DM as just said theres more additions to come in the next few weeks Neil Lawson 4 Posted 09/07/2025 at 16:19:36 Just need 2 full backs and a speedy right winger who can drop the ball on Barry Beto's bonce. Sean Mitchell 5 Posted 09/07/2025 at 16:19:47 Great news. Get the lad some decent players around him now. Lets be that dark horse team COYB Lord Hughes 6 Posted 09/07/2025 at 16:20:10 Bienvenue! Paul Kossoff 7 Posted 09/07/2025 at 16:26:48 It's £27 million POUNDS, not EurosThe U.K. is not part of the eurozone, so it does not use the euro as its currency. The U.K., true to its established tradition of holding steadfast to its pound sterling, has remained independent of the eurozone and thus opted out of using the euro as its currency.So we pay £27 million POUNDS, not Euros, ok? Unless of course the person or thing writing this article is, in fact, a European.Anyway, let's hope Barry is the real deal and not another Chermiti or Beto. Hopefully after paying £27million POUNDS, Moyes doesn't come out with the bullshit excuse, in, he's young, and needs time to adapt. We ain't got time for signing players who aren't up to doing the job we bought them for. Mike Powell 8 Posted 09/07/2025 at 16:28:36 Watching sly sports, they have been talking for half hour about Chelsea, and Arsenal, then went on to talk about Sunderland's signings. Not one mention of Everton signing Barry. Kieran Kinsella 9 Posted 09/07/2025 at 16:29:17 PaulHow do you know we paid pounds? The other club are in Europe. Assuming we sent a wire transfer you have the option of sending it as pounds and the Spanish bank convert it to Euros or converting it to Euros first and then wiring it as Euros. Often times you get a better exchange rate if you convert it to a foreign currency at your bank before it is sent as opposed to sending it as pounds and letting their bank convert it. Ergo, we probably did pay in Euros. Paul Kossoff 10 Posted 09/07/2025 at 16:31:36 Yes! I'm a habitual moaner, of the highest order and I admit it. My favourite painting is the moaner Lisa (I would have used more colour and a better frame.) I firmly believe my calling on TW is to bitch, and moan and complain. If it gets people to do what I'm doing, which is moaning and bitching, then I've achieved my goal, instead of a lot of old housewives knitting away in agreement.😁 Richard Duff 11 Posted 09/07/2025 at 16:33:39 Lets hope Barry Can Swim!! Kieran Kinsella 12 Posted 09/07/2025 at 16:35:37 Paul,No worries. If Kenwright was still alive, we probably would have paid in pounds. A bag of used fivers dug up from his backyard -- half of them counterfeit. Kevin Molloy 13 Posted 09/07/2025 at 16:37:12 He's got very good English and seems very confident. It's great to have got this hugely important piece of the jigsaw out of the way. It's probably the most important signing. It would have been horrible if this had dragged on, and we'd not been able to get in one of our top targets. Best in all top five leagues in the air (well, second). I can't see us having either him or Beto on the bench, I think Beto will go, and we will get in another attacker who can play across all forward positions. He's only 22, so I reckon there will be a fair few games when he's not very effective, but he seems to be improving at a rate of knots, and anyone who is tall, fast, and scores goals, will get on okay. Dave Downey 14 Posted 09/07/2025 at 16:38:22 Another Moise Keane, Oumar Niasse, Cenk Tosun… etc etc? Let's hope not. Assuming we are not just a temporary stepping stone for him, you have to wonder why he would choose Everton if he actually does have the ability to "terrorise Premier League defences" as the pundits like to say. Hopefully he will at least be able to trap the ball first time. That'll be a start. Sean Mitchell 15 Posted 09/07/2025 at 16:40:04 Mike #8Sly sports, talksport. Theyre all one eyed and obsessed with the sly 6. The sly 6 are the only teams to talk about in their one eyes(s).I think one of them is actually an Evertonian. Imagine being surrounded endless sly 6 bile. Fuck them.Welcome to Everton, Barry. Si Pulford 16 Posted 09/07/2025 at 17:13:04 Stop dithering and start buying Everton this is a disgrace. Ed Prytherch 17 Posted 09/07/2025 at 17:14:08 It is too soon to parting with Beto. A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush. Jonathan Oppenheimer 18 Posted 09/07/2025 at 17:22:23 Welcome, Thierno! (Love that my phone autocorrected to Thierry — if he proves half as good as that other Frenchman, itll be a success.) Good first interview, despite limited English, will be good to have Gana and Ndiaye around as our French-speaking contingent to get him settled.I have no idea nor strong feelings one way or another about whether this is a good buy. It feels like it could go both ways, but hes younger than Cenk or Niasse was when we brought them in, more polished than Chermiti, with a better touch than Beto, or so it seems. We absolutely have to keep Beto unless were sure we can bring in another striker and plan to keep Chermiti around. Otherwise were asking way too much of the young lad to be our starting number 9 and hit the ground running, even at that price.I was surprised that striker was our first big buy, but we have no choice but to bring in 4-6 more, so it doesnt really matter the order they come in, just that they come in at all. Only Armstrong is ready from the youngsters to compete, so lets just hope we have the money and smarts to bring in the right people from here.All signs so far are good. Mike Gaynes 19 Posted 09/07/2025 at 17:24:22 No, Beto's not going anywhere. Nobody starts a season with one striker, or even two.And Barry has been signed because he has bags of pace, aggression and skill. And tons of potential.He's not the the finished article. Not ready to lead the line. Les Moorcroft 20 Posted 09/07/2025 at 17:26:12 Dave 14 You must be fun to drink with.Lightn up. Mike Gaynes 21 Posted 09/07/2025 at 17:31:02 From Paddy Boyland and Thom Harris in The Athletic:There is a sequence in Villarreals 3-1 win against Las Palmas last season that highlights Thierno Barrys promise.The striker is facing his own goal, midway inside his own half, with a defender right on his back. The two grapple for possession, tumbling to the turf, but Barry is quickest to react, beating his opponent and another covering Las Palmas player to the stray ball.From there, he races, socks rolled down, to the edge of the penalty area, sending another defender, Alex Suarez, to the turf with a shoulder barge, before calmly setting up Nicolas Pepe for the opener.It is not always slick, but stopping Barry in these moments feels like an ordeal. His 6ft 5in (196cm) frame, ability in transition and eye for a pass, witnessed in that goal against Las Palmas, mark him out as a unique proposition.Everton have been aware of the Lyon-born striker since the 2023-24 season, when he was a raw yet promising talent at Swiss side Basel. Now 22, he is still refining his game, but his displays in his sole season with Villarreal in La Liga saw his name move up scouting shortlists. By the second half of the campaign, he had emerged as a regular one to watch alongside Nick Woltemade, Stuttgarts 23-year-old striker.The comparison between Barry and Germany international Woltemade is interesting in the sense that they are very different players. Both are tall strikers with an eye for goal, but Barry looks to stretch the oppositions defence while Woltemade is better in tight spaces, with the ball played to his feet. The question for Everton manager David Moyes and his staff to answer was whether they wanted another striker closer in fit to first-choice Beto or a point of difference.Barry, who made eight caps for France Under-21s, is not afraid to get physical. Everton ended up plumping for Barry, largely due to his ability to dominate the box and stretch defences.The clubs internal data showed a player with an elite physical profile who should work well in Moyes system, while having a high ceiling in terms of future development.There is an acceptance on Merseyside that he will require time and patience as he acclimatises, but also a belief that he is ready to share minutes with Beto next season.Talks took place over the past month and it has taken time to get to the point where Barry is now an Everton player. His Villarreal deal, signed when he joined from Basel for an initial €13.5m (£11.6m; $16m) last summer, contained a hefty release clause of €40m.Everton started negotiations looking for a significant discount on that number but both parties are likely to see the final figure of €32m plus bonuses as a happy compromise.There was confusion at times. Towards the end of last week, noises from Spain suggested a deal had been reached between the clubs. The insistence on Merseyside was that progress had been made, but certain details were still to be ironed out.The fee does not appear to have changed much, if at all, in the intervening period, but the suggestion since has been that the clubs were haggling over the structure of the deal and when certain amounts were paid. Barry cut short his holiday in Miami, after representing France at this summers European Under-21 Championship in Switzerland, to travel early this week for a medical on Tuesday and complete a move. In Florida, he had trained with soon-to-be team-mate Carlos Alcaraz and former Everton loanee Jack Harrison.Everton will be pleased to have finally signed a top target and bolstered their forward line after the departure of Dominic Calvert-Lewin as a free agent. They were aware of interest in Barry from England and some Champions League clubs, but they did their groundwork with the player and his camp. Moyes sales pitch, where he outlined his interest in working with the Frenchman, helped convince him Everton was the right club.Now player and club will hope the switch pays dividends. David Midgley 22 Posted 09/07/2025 at 17:34:04 Paul, #10 We need a winger, not a whinger, Andrew Clare 23 Posted 09/07/2025 at 17:34:11 Excellent signing. Hopefully we can sign another four of the same age and same potential.Dont bother listening to Sky sports and Talk sport they are shows hosted by bandwagon jumpers for bandwagon jumpers. Martin Berry 24 Posted 09/07/2025 at 17:36:35 First up whats this nonsense about selling Beto because we have bought Barry.We could well be in the envied position of having two very physical strikers to choose from, plus Chermiti's potential.Barry is just the sort of young player we should be looking at signing, thankfully its happened !So whose next in will be on peoples minds. Will be a full back, midfielder or right winger next through the door ? I am sure moves are going on behind the scenes.Personally I hope its McAtee from City, an incredibly talented young player with immense potential. Joe McMahon 25 Posted 09/07/2025 at 17:38:21 Very pleased with this signing (at last). Butbhas anyone seen the news about Carlo Ancelotti? Brent Stephens 26 Posted 09/07/2025 at 17:39:15 Wow, prison sentence for Carlo Brent Stephens 27 Posted 09/07/2025 at 17:41:51 But prison sentence suspended. Danny O'Neill 28 Posted 09/07/2025 at 17:42:09 Yes Brent, 12 months. But he won't go to prison. He pays a fine instead. Kevin Molloy 29 Posted 09/07/2025 at 17:45:31 the reason I think we'll sell Beto is cos money is so tight, and we can't afford to have a player worth £20m plus on the bench every week. Either he or Barry will play, and I can see Moyes thinking that if he swapped Beto for a Richi type forward, he could get them both on the pitch at the same time. I know some are saying 'he's raw' etc, but we haven't lashed out £30m quid just to put him on the bench, and when he does play Beto will be unused. I also suspect that Moyes whilst he likes Beto wants more from his all round game. We'll see, it does of course depend on if there is a Richi type player that Moyes likes. Ian Bennett 30 Posted 09/07/2025 at 17:47:18 Looking forward to seeing him in a blue jersey.Not watched any of the YouTube stuff, just want to see with my own eyes.Hopefully a new hero. Danny O'Neill 31 Posted 09/07/2025 at 17:51:03 I don't see the need to sell Beto.If we did, we'd have to spend on another striker.I'm just pleased we've got this one over the line. Ryan Holroyd 32 Posted 09/07/2025 at 17:59:50 We dont know if money is ‘so tightWe cant do this ‘oh weve signed a player, x player has to leave stuff. We need a squad not just 13 players. Really could do with another CF plus Beto and Barry. Beto will start v Leeds I'm sure. Justin Doone 33 Posted 09/07/2025 at 18:05:45 Welcome and I know we all wish him well. There will be a lot of expectation on his young shoulders. I hope we are all prepared to be patient with the lad. May he light up the pitch, the stadium, the league, our hopes and dreams of winning a trophy whilst scoring and contributing plenty of goals and wins. However, I'm not convinced Barry will start the season as first choice striker. I think the likelihood is Beto is in pole position. He and Chermiti will battle for the second spot. Having done a little research on him his play is not too dissimilar to Beto. A younger version with maybe a better touch and understanding of the offside rule. Crucially he has a little more time on his side to improve and develop his game.If he stays fit and plays well he can become our main striker before the season finishes but that will depend on how he adapts and who else we bring in to help create chances and improve our general play.I still think Chermiti is technically better but injures have blunted his development and chances.Could all 3 play together, maybe, but I doubt we would risk it, good luck to all! Mike Powell 34 Posted 09/07/2025 at 18:13:03 There is no way we will sell Beto, it would mean we would have to go and get another striker, just makes no sense Mal van Schaick 35 Posted 09/07/2025 at 18:16:45 Cant say I know a lot about him, but we are on a rebuild mission, so lets take it that hes been scouted, fits the profile and ambitions of the new owners and delivers on the pitch. Welcome, good luck and enjoy banging the goals in. Brian Wilkinson 36 Posted 09/07/2025 at 18:17:00 Danny, might be first time Everton get a mention on sky sports, nailed on they will say former Everton Manager with it not being in a positive light. Danny O'Neill 37 Posted 09/07/2025 at 18:24:59 Brian, I spent a total of 7 hours in the car on a round trip to Liverpool on Sunday to go to a Christening stupidly subjecting myself to Talk Sport.Manchester City this, Arsenal that, Chelsea, Manchester United. Tottenham.I kid you not, in those 7 hours, not one mention of Everton!!Maybe I was on one of my calls of nature at the services when they may have mentioned us. Nicolas Piñon 38 Posted 09/07/2025 at 18:27:27 Looks very skillful for hes height in Spain Add Your Comments In order to post a comment, you need to be logged in as a registered user of the site. » Log in now Or Sign up as a ToffeeWeb Member — it's free, takes just a few minutes and will allow you to post your comments on articles and Talking Points submissions across the site. How to get rid of these ads and support TW © ToffeeWeb