Anjishnu Roy 14/09/2025 2comments  |  Jump to last

David Moyes has experimented with the striker position early in the season and the feeling is that neither Beto nor new signing Thierno Barry have nailed that role completely yet.

While Beto started the opening fixture against Leeds United, Barry displaced him from the starting XI against Brighton and in the cup game against Mansfield Town before Beto returned to lead the line against Wolves and Aston Villa.

Between them, Beto has scored twice while Barry is yet to find the back of the net. Although the Guinea-Bissau international got the nod against Unai Emery’s side at home, his performance was poor as Beto was guilty of missing a string of chances to score.

Barry, who came on for the final 15 minutes, was also denied by Tyrone Mings after being put through on goal late in the game.

Asked about the mindset behind his striker selection, Moyes said, “Just the goals. I might just chop and change for no particular reason.

“At the moment, I’m also introducing a boy who has not played in the Premier League, a centre-forward I should say who has not played in the Premier League.

“I want to give him the opportunities to see what he can do and if he can keep stepping up.

“But I don’t want to put too much pressure on him right away to show.”

Despite the goalless draw, Moyes was impressed with the performance and especially with his wingers, Iliman Ndiaye and Jack Grealish. Grealish won the player of the month award for the first time in his career just before the game while Ndiaye has taken to the opposite flank seamlessly following Grealish’s arrival.

The Senegalese also overcame a “knock” mentioned by Moyes in his pre-match press conference to start against Aston Villa on Saturday.

“I thought Jack did brilliantly. I thought Ili was fantastic in the first half and I thought Jack was brilliant as well,” said Moyes.

“I thought the two of them were fantastic in their ball-carrying, their one-v-one situations and are making us look a much bigger threat than we were before.”

 

Reader Comments (2)

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Jeff Armstrong
1 Posted 14/09/2025 at 15:50:15
Beto and Barry are too similar, been obvious for weeks, and yet we let Chermiti and DCL go, and have replaced neither.

Poor recruitment/ management.

Vardy will not be on big bucks at Cremonese , would have been a great option as something different from what we’ve got currently, a carthorse and a fledgling.

Derek Thomas
2 Posted 14/09/2025 at 16:08:52
I stand to be corrected, but I'm not sure if you put the two of them together you'd get a real one.

Edit; Nobody can come in until January, so how long do we give them, (these alleged 'false' No.9s) - and Moyes for that matter - to sort themselves out?.

If we don't have(?) or can't get a 'real' No.9 could Ndaiye or A.N. Other play a proper False No.9?

Would Moyes even contemplate it? Should he even contemplate it?

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