Everton captain James Tarkowski believes Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall should already be in the England squad, and he has done so before Thomas Tuchel picks his next squad.
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall was man of the match again on Monday night as Everton won 1-0 at Newcastle United four days after collecting the same award in a 3-1 Carabao Cup win over the Magpies. Thierno Barry’s eighth goal of the season settled the league game at St James’ Park and lifted David Moyes’ side to seventh.
Tuchel confirms England’s squad for Friday’s UEFA Nations League games against Croatia and Spain at 10:00 GMT. No. 8 Everton have never had a senior captain and their skipper believes that must change now.
What did Dewsbury-Hall do at St James’ Park?
A lot. The 28-year-old completed three key passes, completed every dribble he attempted and covered 11.9km, the second-highest distance of anyone on the pitch.
He was behind many of Everton’s best moments in a dominant first half. His free-kick was headed into Barry’s path by Jarrad Branthwaite, but the striker failed to get a clean connection from seven yards. In first-half stoppage time, his curling cross from the left edge of the box missed Jake O’Brien at the back post and seconds later he laid the ball back for Harrison Armstrong to score first time from 12 yards.
Dewsbury-Hall almost doubled their lead with a 25-yard strike after Barry fired home four minutes into the second half before Lukas Hornicek turned the bar. Everton then held on until eight minutes of stoppage time, Jordan Pickford’s legs denying Yoane Wissa late on.
‘He always tells me how good he is’
Tarkowski began with a joke, but the rest of his sentence was serious. Speaking to evertontv, the Everton captain said: “I don’t really like praising him because he tells me how good he is all the time! No, he’s at a high level. He really is. I think he’s developed a belief that he always wants to be a difference maker. He always gets the ball and he’s been great for us.”
In England he went further: “I think he should already be in the England set-up. He’s obviously in a position where there’s already a lot of power in that set-up in England, so it’s difficult for him.”
He added: “But I see him every day, the quality he brings and also the mentality he brings to the team. So I’m very happy for him and all he can do is continue to perform the way he’s doing and hopefully [the call-up] will come.”
Is Moyes on board too?
He is. Moyes also used his post-match interview with evertontv to say that man of the match deserves a call-up, so the push comes from the dressing room.
The manager had good reason to be in a generous mood. Everton travel to Tyneside on Monday with a cup winner, coming away with a third consecutive win at St James’ Park and are now in the quarter-finals of the Carabao Cup, as well as in the top half of the table.
“It’s about time Seamus asked me to play for Ireland”
Dewsbury-Hall had a full-time interview with former Everton captain and close friend Seamus Coleman, who was a studio guest on Sky Sports’ Monday Night Football. Coleman told him he was the best player on the pitch and the midfielder fired back in England.
“We’ll have to wait and see! It’s time for Seamus to stop asking me to play for Ireland! That’s it. I’m just going to keep putting in good performances and whatever happens, it happens.” he said. “I said in the past that if I play for my football club, it increases my chances to play for my country.”
He was less coy about Everton’s ambitions. He called the club “The Sleeping Giant of the English Game” and said: “I’m not here just to go through the motions and finish mid-table. No, I want to push for something because I’m coming into the best years of my career.”
Verdict: Dewsbury-Hall had their best up until Friday
As loud as a midfielder can claim, having been awarded two matches against the same side in four days. Tarkovsky is right that England’s midfield is tight and that is the only real argument against him.
The first call will also not be a reward for a good week. Dewsbury-Hall is where Everton are looking to do something, and if Tuchel wants a player in form, the Everton No.8 is hard to ignore. If the squad goes out without him on Friday, expect his captain to be asked about it again.