Analysis: Dewsbury-Hall at the centre of Moyes' Everton evolution

Player analysis: Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall (Everton)

Everton head coach David Moyes faces his former club in Matchweek 6’s final fixture as they entertain West Ham United in their first match under Nuno Espirito Santo on Monday evening.

While August Player of the Month Jack Grealish is in the spotlight, another new face at Everton, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, has also made a tremendous impact.

After just 259 minutes of Premier League football at Chelsea in 2024/25, Adrian Clarke analyses the start the midfielder has made on Merseyside. 

Dewsbury-Hall & Grealish: a promising combo

Dewsbury-Hall is not grabbing as many headlines as Grealish at Everton, but there is no question the summer signing from Chelsea is helping his more famous team-mate to shine.

Playing in a roving No 10 role, the former Leicester City and Chelsea midfielder has quickly struck up a terrific rapport with Everton’s new left winger Grealish.

In three of the four starts they have made together, Dewsbury-Hall has passed more to Grealish than anyone else, totalling 29 passes overall.

You can see on his season pass map how often the attacking midfielder looks to feed the ball to his left.

Key: Green - successful pass, yellow - chance created, blue - assist, red - failed pass

Of the 12 chances he has created in an Everton shirt, three have been for Grealish.

Dewsbury-Hall also supplied Grealish with an early pass at home to Brighton & Hove Albion, before the latter assisted Iliman Ndiaye for the first goal scored at Hill Dickinson Stadium.

Players who Dewsbury-Hall has created a chance for 25/26

The chemistry has been effective the other way around too.

Grealish slipped Dewsbury-Hall in to score his first Toffees goal against Wolverhampton Wanderers with an emphatic left-footed strike.

Earlier in the same game, from another late run into the box from deep, Dewsbury-Hall was spotted by Grealish and from his clever reverse pass (below), the central midfielder squared the ball for Ndiaye to slot home at the far post.

Locking down the Dewsbury-Hall and Grealish combination will be a priority for West Ham United and Nuno on Monday evening.

Ahead of Matchweek 6 the Toffees duo were ranked second and third in the division for the most key passes.

Chances created in 2025/26*

*before MW6

West Ham will fear Dewsbury-Hall's delivery

West Ham have endured a nightmare start to the campaign defending set-play situations. Leaden-footed inside the six-yard box, the Hammers have been incredibly uncomfortable dealing with corners.

An incredible 32 per cent of all corner-kick goals scored in the Premier League prior to Matchweek 6 have come against West Ham.

Conceding seven goals, four more than any other team, Hammers fans will be edgy every time Dewsbury-Hall sets up to deliver an inswinging corner from the right.

He is second only to West Ham’s James Ward-Prowse when it comes to setting up opportunities from set-pieces in 2025/26.

Chances created from set-pieces in 2025/26*

*before MW6

The graphic below shows the chances (dots; red on-target, yellow off-target) and goals (stars) West Ham have conceded, with 16 attempts coming from six yards out or closer. Opponents have fashioned 28 chances from set-pieces too.

West Ham's chances conceded in 2025/26

Dewsbury-Hall flights lovely left-footed crosses into the six-yard box, and Moyes will deliberately crowd the area in front of the Hammers goalkeeper, likely to be Alphonse Areola, who took over from Mads Hermansen last weekend.

Looking to pin Areola in, players like Jake O’Brien and Thierno Barry will attack crosses at the near post, just like these examples from them against Leeds United and Brighton.

Everton’s xG climbing

The arrivals of Grealish and Dewsbury-Hall are helping the Toffees create better quality chances.

Their Expected Goals (xG) average per 90 minutes as a team has climbed from 1.13 last season to 1.42 in 2025/26.

Everton were lowest-ranked for shots and XG of all sides to avoid relegation in 2024/25, but are now seventh in both categories.

Everton's growing threat

*before MW6

Those accurate set-piece deliveries have played a big part in this rise, as Everton have had the most shots in the Premier League from set-plays.

Everton's threat at set-pieces in 25/26*

*before MW6

Dewsbury-Hall's stamina will test West Ham’s midfield

Moyes wanted to inject better quality on the ball and fresh energy into his starting XI this season, and Dewsbury-Hall is providing both those qualities.

Drifting left and right, but also making progressive forward runs, the 27-year-old’s all-action style has given Everton a spring in their step.

His energy and stamina are a major asset.

Averaging 11.1km per 90 minutes, Dewsbury-Hall has been covering significantly more ground than anyone else who has featured for at least 150 minutes in an Everton shirt.

Yet to miss a single minute of action, he has instantly become a must-pick for Moyes.

Top runners at Everton 25/26

West Ham’s midfield has lacked a bit of athleticism.

New signings Matheus Fernandes and Soungoutou Magassa have improved it, but the likes of Ward-Prowse and Tomas Soucek have struggled against nimble opponents.

Soucek is suspended for this match, but if it’s Ward-Prowse at the base of Nuno’s midfield, Dewsbury-Hall will relish the prospect of making forward runs off him.

His heat map after five matches played shows just how mobile he is inside the opposition half.

A more considered approach?

Moyes added more technical ability in the summer, and consequently Everton’s build-up play has been more considered.

With individuals comfortable on the ball, taking extra touches and with slightly less emphasis on playing long passes straight into the centre-forward, Everton have undergone a minor style shift.

The quantity of their “direct attacks” has dipped dramatically, as has their direct speed, the way they move the ball forward in metres per second.

In 2024/25 their 1.92 metres/second was among the highest direct attacks in the Premier League, but their current rate of 1.47 metres/second is the second-slowest, just ahead of Wolves.

Everton slowing things down

So it is a different sort of Everton side who take on the Hammers on Monday night, and with Dewsbury-Hall at the heart of matters, they will begin the match as worthy favourites.