Barry's Deflected Winner Keeps Everton's Unbeaten Start Alive
An 11th-minute deflection, a disallowed second and a wasteful afternoon in front of goal — Everton beat Ipswich 1-0 to climb to fifth.
Unbeaten runs are rarely built on masterpieces. Everton's 1-0 win over Ipswich Town at Hill Dickinson Stadium on Saturday extended their unbeaten start to the season and lifted David Moyes' side to fifth in the Premier League — even if the margin flattered nobody.
An early goal, then a grind
The decisive moment came in the 11th minute, when James Tarkowski let fly from long range and the ball deflected off Thierno Barry on its way past Christian Walton. From there Everton dominated the ball and racked up 21 shots, but only two found the target — Barry glanced a header wide, and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall somehow headed off target from a perfect Tyler Dibling cross late on.
Ipswich had their moment too: Leif Davis, unmarked at the back post, poked wide with the goal gaping.
VAR takes one away
Everton thought they had a second when Barry headed in from a corner, only for VAR to rule it out — Sky Sports reports the decision went against Brennan Johnson for interfering with Walton's line of sight from an offside position. Moyes was unimpressed: "The goalkeeper wouldn't have saved the header."
Ipswich's afternoon unravelled further in the 67th minute, when Abdul Fatawu collected a second yellow card for simulation and left his side to see out the game with ten men.
What it means
For Everton, fifth place and an unbeaten start are the headline, but the finishing — 21 shots, one deflected goal — is the line Moyes will keep pointing at. Ipswich remain winless, though boss Gary O'Neil found encouragement in the performance: "Away from home in the Premier League, the players deserve credit."