Everton Beat Coventry 3-1 as Barry Scores Twice

Everton beat Coventry City 3-1 as Thierno Barry scored twice in six minutes, lifting David Moyes’s side to fifth place in the Premier League on Friday.

David Moyes’s side trailed to Yann Gboho’s goal early in the second half at the Hill Dickinson Stadium. But Barry proved too hot for Coventry to handle, netting twice in the space of just five minutes to turn the game in Everton’s favour.

Moyes said this week that Manchester City star Erling Haaland “should be worried” about Barry replacing him as the Premier League’s most lethal striker. While that might have been hyperbole, Barry has already reached 10 goals this season, surpassing his total for the entire 2025-26 campaign.

Deadly Barry

That miserable first season with Everton following his move from Villarreal is quickly becoming a distant memory for the in-form 24-year-old, who has six goals in his last seven appearances in all competitions.

Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall scored in the closing minutes to wrap up Everton’s third successive victory in all competitions.

It was a memorable way for Moyes to celebrate a notable milestone as he equalled Harry Catterick’s record of 592 games as Everton manager. Catterick won the First Division title and the FA Cup with Everton, but Moyes, in his second spell in charge, is still waiting to end the club’s long trophy drought, which dates back to 1995.

Everton are heading in the right direction on the evidence of the last 10 days. A pair of wins over Newcastle in the League Cup and Premier League were followed by the mature victory against Coventry, all achieved without Jack Grealish, who has been suspended following a breach of discipline after he reportedly skipped a training session.

The League Cup win over Newcastle was part of a strong run for Moyes’s side. Everton beat Newcastle 3-1 to reach the League Cup last eight last month, and the same scoreline against Coventry underlined how settled the team has become at its new home.

Lampard left frustrated

Coventry boss Frank Lampard was left frustrated with a pair of rejected penalty appeals that could have turned the match in his side’s favour. Lampard, who managed Everton from January 2022 to January 2023, has now seen 16th-placed Coventry beaten three times in their last four games.

In the first meeting between the sides since 2001, Lampard’s men should have taken the lead when Tatsuhiro Sakamoto threaded a pin-point pass to Jack Rudoni, but the midfielder shot straight at Jordan Pickford.

Everton defender James Tarkowski escaped without punishment for pulling Caleb Yirenkyi’s hair, an offence that Coventry believed was worthy of a penalty and a red card.

Coventry were frustrated with VAR for the second time when Vitaliy Mykolenko’s shove on Taiwo Awoniyi failed to yield a penalty immediately after half-time.

They finally took the lead in the 52nd minute as Rudoni’s pass squeezed through Everton’s slack marking towards Gboho, who somehow poked past Pickford from six yards despite being surrounded by three defenders.

But the Ivory Coast midfielder’s first goal since his close-season move from Toulouse was swiftly cancelled out by Barry four minutes later. Mykolenko swung an in-swinging cross into the Coventry area, and Barry was left unmarked to thump his header past Carl Rushworth from close range.

Everton had the momentum, and they went in front after 62 minutes. Barry’s initial shot was saved, but the French striker pounced on the rebound to prod home despite Coventry’s appeals for handball.

Barry turned provider in the 81st minute, clipping a pass through to Dewsbury-Hall, who lashed past Rushworth from a tight angle to cap Everton’s stirring fightback.

Everton beat Coventry: what the win means

The victory moved Everton into fifth place in the Premier League and extended a run that has changed the mood around the club. Three wins in 10 days, two of them against Newcastle, have given Moyes’s side a platform to push for the European places.

For Coventry, the defeat was a reminder of the gap between the Championship and the top flight. Lampard’s side sit 16th and have now lost three of their last four games, and the penalty decisions will sting all the more because they came at key moments.

Tottenham ended Chelsea’s hoodoo with a 2-0 win last month, and Arsenal suffered a shock League Cup exit to Fleetwood, results that show how open the English season has been. Bournemouth have kept a perfect Europa League record, while Jobe Bellingham earned a maiden England call-up this week.

Everton’s next test is to keep the run going without Grealish, whose suspension has forced Moyes to reshape his attack. On the evidence of Friday night, Barry is ready to carry it.

Who scored for Everton against Coventry?

Thierno Barry scored twice, in the 56th and 62nd minutes, and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall added a third in the 81st minute. Yann Gboho scored Coventry’s goal in the 52nd minute.

How many goals has Thierno Barry scored this season?

Barry has scored 10 goals this season, already more than his total for the whole of the 2025-26 campaign. He has six goals in his last seven appearances in all competitions.

What record did David Moyes equal?

Moyes equalled Harry Catterick’s record of 592 games as Everton manager. Catterick won the First Division title and the FA Cup with the club.

Where do Everton sit in the Premier League?

The 3-1 win over Coventry lifted Everton to fifth place in the Premier League, after a third successive victory in all competitions.