Troy Deeney hails Everton 'beast' in warning to Premier League rivals

Troy Deeney has branded James Tarkowski a “beast” after his goalscoring display against Burnley.

Everton strengthened their chances of securing European football for the first time since 2018 after beating Burnley 2-0 on Tuesday.

Tarkowski scored the opener just past the half-hour mark before Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall put the result beyond doubt with a second in the 60th minute.

David Moyes‘ team also secured their first win at Hill Dickinson Stadium since 6 December to move within a point of seventh-placed Brentford.

Centre-back Tarkowski’s display earned him a spot in Deeney’s Premier League Team of the Week, with the ex-Watford man waxing lyrical about the 33-year-old.

• Read more: Dwight McNeil inspirational, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall shines – Everton player ratings vs Burnley

James Tarkowski flies under the radar with Everton

Tarkowski has always been known as a no-nonsense defender, who doesn’t have the best technical ability but can be a brick wall at the back.

The 6ft 1in defender has proven to be a solid signing for Everton since being recruited from Burnley in 2022, with Tarkowski having played more than 150 games for the Toffees.

After picking the Everton star in his Team of the Week, former striker Deeney stressed it is unforgivable that other clubs don’t pick Tarkowski up in the box more due to his aerial threat.

He said in his BBC Sport column: “I know everyone knows this, but it seems that other teams don’t. Tarkowski is very good in the air, and you have to mark him at set-pieces.

“No one seems to do that! He was a beast, again, as he scored in the 2-0 win over Burnley. Everton, again going quietly about their business and getting things done the right away. Tarkowski was solid, and he offers you a threat going forward.”

Everton will hope Tarkowski is in beast mode when they travel to Premier League leaders Arsenal in their next fixture on 14 March.

• Read more: The three Premier League fixtures that could secure Everton’s place in Europe

Everton get monkey off their back

As previously mentioned, Everton had not won at their new home for nearly three months before beating the relegation-threatened Clarets.

There was so much excitement about moving to their new state-of-the-art Hill Dickinson Stadium last summer but that jubilation has somewhat subsided.

Many Everton fans felt something had been lost following their exit from Goodison Park, and their home record didn’t exactly help lift the mood around the place.

Even with their win over 19th-placed Burnley, the Toffees have the 14th-best home record in the Premier League this season.

Conversely, on their travels, they sit fourth in the table, with Moyes’ team picking up 24 points away from home.

As they try and push for Europe, Everton will hope that this latest win will lead to a run of victories at Hill Dickinson Stadium. If they want to finish in the top seven, they may need to do that.

For more on Everton, check out Football Insider for news and updates.

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