Amadou Korka Barry is considered a great of his generation in African basketball. A point guard for the Guinea national team, he was one of the top scorers for his country during the late nineties.
However, while son Thierno shared his sporting and scoring prowess, the youngster preferred to kick a ball into a net as opposed to shooting one through a hoop.
“Thierno has always loved soccer since he was in elementary school but I would still ask him to play basketball because it can be useful for a football player,” explains Amadou. “You know, to score in basketball, you have to hide well from your opponent and so I told Thierno that learning the reflexes required for basketball would help him out with his movement on the soccer field.”
That fatherly advice certainly paid off. Thierno followed in his Dad’s footsteps to make the grade in top-level sport and now, after spending a year with Villarreal in Spain, the forward has signed a four-year contract with Everton in a reported £27million deal.
Standing at 6 foot 5 inches, Barry certainly had the size and frame to make it as a basketball player but joining the Toffees is the realisation of a football ambition he has always carried.
“Since he was little, his dream was to play in the Premier League,” beams Amadou. “Now his dream will come true with Everton, a big part of English football history.
Born in Lyon in October 2002, two days after a 16-year-old Wayne Rooney scored that wondergoal for Everton against Arsenal at Goodison Park, Thierno’s football journey to Merseyside started in Montchat, the 3rd arrondissement of the Lyon commune. Covering the entire area east of the River Rhone, this part of town is known as ‘the district of a thousand gardens’ as it boasts vast green spaces and a village-like atmosphere. Detached, red brick houses are dotted along the streets and it was here, away from the hustle and bustle of city life in the centre of Lyon, that Barry first learned his trade.
Between the ages of nine and thirteen, the new Toffees signing played for AS Montchat Lyon, a club renowned for developing young talent.
Based at Stade Marc-Vivien Foe, named in honour of the former Lyon, West Ham and Manchester City player who passed away in 2003, AS Montchat Lyon is one of the biggest amateur teams in the Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes region and has developed a strong reputation for building players up. Every year now, a large number are signed by professional clubs.
After gaining a solid grounding, Barry switched clubs, joining Association Sportie de Saint Priest, a 20-minute drive south from Montchat. This is another club that boasts a proud history of nurturing top talent with new Manchester City winger Ryan Cherki, France legend Youri Djorkaeff and former Lyon and Real Betis playmaker Nabil Fekir all turning out in the distinctive yellow and red AS Saint-Priest strip when they were young.
Barry spent three years with ASSP before being spotted by SC Toulon, who had just been promoted to the Championnat National, the third tier of the French league system, in 2019.
Coach Youssef Sif can clearly remember the first time he saw the towering figure of Barry marauding around the pitch.
“It was during a scouting session for SC Toulon’s Under 19s,” recalls Sif with absolute clarity. “Thierno showed great individual technique and a good first touch though he was still fragile athletically.”
While Barry has joined Everton as a forward, he actually started out further back on the field though always had an eye on making things happen in attack.
“He played as a central midfielder but always forward, creating an extra man,” says Sif. “Then he played as a winger before converting to a central striker role.”
The switch to SC Toulon was Barry’s first big move away from home as the glamorous Côte d'Azur is nearly four hours away from Lyon in the South of France.
Playing in the hot and sunny Mediterranean climate, Barry excelled and also continued his studies before gaining an employment contract as an educator alongside his football.
“He was highly ambitious with great self-confidence,” says Sif. The coach offered Barry plenty of support and encouragement for which the forward was always respectful and grateful, he adds.
However, despite the pair enjoying a great relationship, there was an occasion when the coach and player clashed. It was a learning experience for the young striker and one that stood him in great stead for his later career in Spain as he learned that the role of the frontman isn’t just about sticking the ball in the back of the net.
“We had a match against Ajaccio and he refused to go up for a header against the defender,” Sif explains.
Frustrated by Barry’s seeming refusal to follow his instruction, the coach subbed him off only 20 minutes into the game. As the striker sat on the bench having been replaced, he was clearly emotional, says the coach.
That incident though, it stirred something in Barry and drove him on.
“From that moment, he won all of his duels in the air,” smiles Sif.
The fact Barry boasted the second-best aerial duel success in Europe's top five league's last season is testament to that early coaching and the forward’s desire to improve, now thriving in an action he seemingly didn’t enjoy when starting out in the professional game. Sif set an example and Barry stepped up.
In 2020, Thierno’s potential was spotted by Sochaux, a club which features twice on the CV of former Everton forward Mickael Madar.
“Sochaux were looking for a striker and so the club made contact with Toulon to offer Barry a trial after he had been suggested by an agent,” explains Alexis De Freitas, who is an avid analyser of the Sochaux youth set-up.
Former defender Philippe Raschke watched Barry against Cannes and the forward put in a great performance. However, the trial which was to come the week after had to be postponed and the season ended early due to the pandemic. Sochaux maintained their interest though and the forward impressed when his trial finally went ahead in 2021.
However, a deal wasn’t immediately forthcoming.
“The club greatly appreciated Barry’s mentality to never give up and knew there was something there, but initially they hesitated,” says De Freitas.
The attacker returned to Toulon but then, after a month, Sochaux pushed forward to sign Barry and he settled in quickly, netting four goals in pre-season.
Despite the impressive start, there was great competition in the forward positions and so he didn’t actually appear in the first-team. Instead Barry played for the Lion Cubs reserve side in the fifth tier of the French football pyramid. Starting 18 times and making a total of 23 appearances, he was deployed on the left and right wing, scoring ten goals and recording five assists.
Sochaux were pleased with Barry’s progress and offered him another year at the club, giving the player a week to respond.
“He responded the same day because he had actually been approached by other clubs already,” explains De Freitas. “Lens had considered offering him a professional contract and so he went there on trial. He played in a match against Padova and scored but got injured.”
Ultimately, the potential move to Lens and the chance to play in Ligue 1 came to nothing and so once Barry was fit again, he continued to work hard with Sochaux. Then, he hit a stunning strike at just the right time.
“He scored a magnificent goal and provided an assist against Valdahon Vercel and SK Beveren were there to witness it,” says De Freitas.
The Belgian club invited Barry along to take a closer look and Beveren’s former CEO Antoine Gobin remembers the very first time he met the striker.
“It was after a practice match where a mix of trialists, first-team players and Under 21s trained together. I introduced myself and told him we were interested to see what he could do in person for ourselves.”
Barry was set for two weeks at Beveren before going to French side Lorient who were also keen on signing him. However, Gobin soon realised he had to move quickly.
“I spoke with the Lorient head scout about Thierno and he told me that they would like him to grow into a first-team player but to start with he would be a reserve player. After a few training sessions, I told the agent to cancel the trip to Lorient since our sporting director, head scout and I all agreed Thierno had something special.”
The wheels were set in motion and though there had also been offers from clubs in the German and Spanish second division, Barry elected to sign for Beveren in the Challenger Pro League, one down from the top tier. As De Freitas puts it: “This was a serious promotion project and he felt he would be able to grow there.”
Barry put pen to paper in July 2022 and was now an SK Beveren first-teamer.
“Ten days after that first practice, he signed and he was still softly spoken, shy and humble,” says Gobin. “His father was beaming with just as much joy as Thierno.”
Beveren and Gobin made a commitment to Barry and took steps to look after the youngster as he settled into life at a new club in a new country.
“When he signed part of the agreement was that we’d also accompany him on his journey in life: we paid for his driving licence, got him an apartment. I remember him telling me he was so grateful for having a working fridge and freezer, since that was a luxury where he was from.
“I would also speak to Thierno in the week about his last match, not necessarily to debrief his actions but to check in on how he felt. He had coaches for the tactical aspect of things, but I wanted to make sure this young Frenchman far from home was adapting to his new surroundings.”
Gobin always recognised what the move meant to Thierno and his father and what he had endured to get to this stage of his career.
“He had overcome a lot to simply sign his first professional contract with us. Bouncing from one position to the next on the pitch, from one region of France to another. He comes from a working class family and you see that in him on and off the pitch: he’s hard working, dedicated and very generous with his efforts and emotions.
“He feeds off of being loved, and wants to give back that love.”
The striker was loved instantly at the Freethiel Stadium thanks to his early goals for the club and the adoration and adulation poured over from the terraces.
Already by September, as the striker wandered behind the goal after coming off the field, fans chanted ‘Barry! Barry! Barry!’ and gave him a raucous reception. Visibly moved, the forward covered his face with his shirt.
Then, after scoring a brace in a 5-0 home win over Lierse K. in October, Barry was now in the stand with supporters and, gifted a megaphone by the chief ‘capo’ responsible for getting songs going, started Beveren chants while still in his kit.
For Gobin, one of the highlights came in a crucial top-of-the table home clash against promotion rivals RWD Molenbeek.
Right before half-time, Barry raced into the box, took a touch with his left foot and spun to curl the ball right into the corner of the net. It was an expert finish.
“It was moments like that which made us question just how far, and how quickly, he could go,” admits Gobin.
As Barry raced away to celebrate, the towering Molenbeek number 16 could be seen stepping back in frustration, because he knew the ball was flying into the net, before putting his head in his hands. That player was Jake O’Brien, who was on loan in Belgium from Crystal Palace. Amazingly, now three years on, the Ireland defender and Barry will be Everton team-mates this season.
Gobin insists Beveren witnessed Barry’s ‘supersonic ascension to top talent status’ and believes his partnership with Dieumerci Mbokani - who featured twice at Goodison Park for Standard Liege and Dynamo Kiev in European clashes against Everton earlier in his career - helped the striker grow and flourish.
“A player playing in his first professional year is expected to make mistakes and grow from them,” he says. “However, Thierno learned so quickly playing next to Mbokani, one of the all time great strikers in Belgium, that this learning curve was parabolic. He is a fast learner and eager to grow, which makes for the perfect combination.”
Barry was named in the Challenger Pro League Team of the Season and finished the campaign as the division’s top scorer after netting 20 times in 31 matches.
Beveren sadly missed out on promotion to the Jupiler League, though Barry’s goals had helped the team to second place and the striker had a huge impact.
Gobin knew as early as the winter that if Beveren didn’t go up, ‘keeping Thierno would be impossible’.
“I worked with his agent throughout the spring to keep tabs on where his head was at, but as soon as the season was over my conversation with Thierno was about trusting his agents and us to find the best solution for him and for the club.”
In July 2023, Barry left Beveren to join Basel, giants of Swiss football and it’s fair to say his start to life at St. Jakob-Park was eventful to say the least as the striker was sent off not only on his debut for the club but in his second game too.
Starting against St Gallen on the opening day of the Swiss Super League, the frontman picked up two yellow cards in a 2-1 defeat. Just five days later, Barry got his first goal for the club but was shown red in a 3-1 defeat against Kazakh side FC Tobol, whose director of football was Andrei Kanchelskis, in the second qualifying round of the UEFA Conference League.
It was a rough start to life at Basel and goals didn’t come easy. The striker didn’t net in the league until January 30. It was a brace in a 3-1 win at FC Winterthur and suddenly the goals started flowing. For the rest of the campaign, Barry was the RotBau’s most dangerous player and ended the season with ten goals.
The forward had settled and found another new home where he could shine. Everyone you speak to at the club speaks very highly of Thierno Barry, both as a person and as a footballer. He’s a player who swiftly earns respect and appreciation from fans and pros alike due to the way in which he carries himself on and off the pitch.
Barry was in the groove and started the 2024/25 campaign in scintillating form, scoring five goals in the opening three games as Basel. The striker netted a brace in a 3-0 win at Grasshopper Club Zurich before recording another two in an empathic 6-0 away victory against Servette.
The potential Barry showed in France, Belgium and now Switzerland meant he was being noticed across Europe and it was Villarreal in Spain who made the move. Signing a five-year deal at El Madrigal, Barry took the number 15 shirt and went straight into the matchday squad, coming off the bench and replacing former Everton winger Arnaut Danjuma. Making his home debut, again as a sub, three nights later, he netted Villarreal’s second goal and equalised in a 4-3 win over Celta Vigo.
Barry quickly became an important part of the team and would go on to make 35 LaLiga appearances in his first season in Spain. The young forward netted eleven goals including a hat-trick in a 5-2 win at Leganes just before the winter break.
Former coach Youssef Sif visited his protege when Villarreal hosted Real Madrid in March and beamed with pride as the pair posed for a photograph together on the El Madrigal pitch after a game in which Barry had played the second half and come up against Jude Bellingham, Thibaut Courtois and compatriot Kylian Mbappe.
“It was incredible and enriching,” says Sif of the experience.
Now, Barry has swapped Villarreal’s Yellow Submarine for Everton on the Banks of the royal blue Mersey.
While the speed of Barry’s rise has perhaps surprised some people, Gobin insists that the belief the player has in himself was always going to carry him forward.
“We knew at Beveren that Thierno had the potential to climb steps very quickly,” he says, before admitting, “I would be lying though had I told you that, three years ago, I expected him to make a move to the Premier League so soon.”
Gobin always backed Barry to make it to the big leagues but even he has been left impressed by his meteoric climb to join Villarreal and now Everton by the age of just 22. Saying that, he’s not surprised either.
“When he left Beveren, I thought a move to a first division club in Switzerland, Denmark or Belgium would be a great intermediate step for a couple of years before going to Germany or Ligue 1 back in France.
“Since he was little, his dream was to play in the Premier League. Now his dream will come true with Everton, a big part of English football history."
Amadou Barry
“The step up to LaLiga after just one year with Basel though has already put him way ahead of schedule and this next move to the Premier League is simply incredible. Such a career progression is exceptional and rarely seen.
“However, that’s what makes Thierno, Thierno. He believes in himself, he learns from his mistakes and he knows that he hasn’t reached his full potential yet.”
A born winner, Thierno is fiercely determined to succeed and has always kept going.
With much more to come, what will Barry bring to Everton?
“He will be a menace for Premier League defenders,” insists Gobin. “He’ll make deep runs in between the full backs and centre-backs and his top speed will allow him separation off the ball. He’ll be fearless in 1v1s and aerial duels. He might be caught offside now and again but that’s because he constantly plays at the limit.
“Thierno will be able to score from everywhere in the final third but will often look for ways to cut back in on his right from the left part of the pitch.
“He’ll be generous in his defensive efforts too, pressing from the front; not many strikers his size have his speed, so he’s a menace for defenders as they seek to play from the back.”
Gobin will be proudly watching Barry star for Everton and still keeps in touch with the striker, chatting just days before he sealed his move to Merseyside. He was delighted to see the striker representing France at the Euro U21 Championship in Slovakia this summer.
“I still watch the majority of his matches since he’s left, and his last few weeks with the French youth team is such a moment of pride for him.”
Former coach Sif believes Barry has what it takes to play for the France national team at World Cups and Euros while pushing Everton back up the Premier League table.
“For him, this is the next step; he has no limits,” insists Sif. “It's not a dream, but a goal.”
Speaking in the days leading up to the Everton transfer, his father talked of Thierno’s desire to put in the hours and always improve, pointing out that Thierno was being put through his paces in Miami ahead of the switch so that he was ready to go with the Toffees.
“His personality is that he doesn’t cheat and he works hard,” Amadou said. “Even now, he is working with a professional trainer in the United States.”
Growing up, the striker may have opted for Lyon’s football pitches over the basketball courts but taking on his Dad’s sporting wisdom allowed him to forge his own path and realise his dreams.
“That is what it means today,” said Amadou.
Scoring runs in the Barry family and now Thierno has the opportunity to play in the Premier League and kickstart a new Everton era.
An Everton season ticket holder and football writer, you can subscribe to all of Ell Bretland's work at https://ellbretland.substack.com
Reader Responses
Selected thoughts from readers09/07/2025 21:16:15
As we have all long recognised we desperately needed a young, hungry striker with goals in his knapsack. One of the many positive aspects of this signing is that the player has arrived with virtually the whole pre-season available to build an understanding with his new team mates. Too often in recent years, decades even, players who should have been key acquisitions, have only arrived in the closing days of the summer window, thus lessening their chances of making an impact.
While it sounds like he will be ready to hit the ground running Barry may still need a period to acclimatise himself to the demands of the Premier League. Mindful of that I agree with Peter we must retain Beto. I envisage the pair sharing the role of the main striker in the coming months. If, between them, they can provide something like 25 goals over the course of the season we can, other things being equal, hope to break into the top half of the table.
10/07/2025 07:23:09
This is a Bretland special -- great writing and unique reporting angles. How the 'Ell did you find all those Everton connections, like O'Brien and Kanchelskis. And how long did it take you to pull in all those interviews? Great stuff here, Mr. B.
10/07/2025 07:23:12
A great, detailed read.
He sounds like a player from humble beginnings, who remains humble and wants to keep improving. I like how he listened to his coaches and learned.
I agree, he will need time to settle into his new surroundings and become accustomed to a new country and new league. But he's done that before.
Also, he will share the forward berth with Beto. There is no requirement to sell Beto. This squad has required depth in positions all over the pitch for many seasons.
I've not watched him play, but I'm looking forward to seeing him do so.
10/07/2025 08:53:24
What a great read, inspirational stuff.
Ditto Mike G, great everton connections on his journey.
This has given us a fantastic insight, hope springs in buckets for this guy!
10/07/2025 09:51:46
This is an excellent article, providing great insight into the player's background, development, character and playing style.
Barry seems to have all the attributes that Moyes likes in a player, and judging by how much Beto has benefited from his coaching, he could do great things for us.
His career path seems to have been carefully plotted and he has clearly adjusted and improved with every step up. If all goes well, we might be talking about contract extensions next year if we don't want to see the guy in the photos pointing at him in a PSG/Man City/Real Madrid shirt. Apologies for getting too far ahead of myself but it's the Evertonian in me.
Welcome to the Royal Blue Mersey, Thierno! The true home of the yellow submarine...
10/07/2025 21:44:01
That’s a fantastic bit of writing Ell….we now need more Evertonians on this site to read and comment on such fascinating articles.
I’m in agreement with the above sentiments….Beto and Chermiti need to be retained….can’t see any logic in getting rid of either of them.
11/07/2025 10:13:46
Great insight Ell. He sounds like a proper Moyes signing - young, hungry and humble.
A couple more decent signings please and things will be starting to come together nicely…
12/07/2025 16:23:05
Thanks, Si. The kind of stuff that Ell and the likes of John Raftery, Sid Fishes et al have published here in recent weeks is exactly what I’d hoped to attract to Evertonia.
Unfortunately, NewsNow are no longer taking applications for new sites (which is frustrating because I was one of its earliest adopters when I submitted ToffeeWeb back in the day) so spreading awareness of the articles to other Blues is a challenge.
The best thing you can do if you like what’s here is share it on social media and tell your Evertonian mates while I’m exploring other ways of boosting visibility ahead of the new season.
12/07/2025 23:56:12
Evolution of Everton, on and off the park, is going well.
Viva Santo Domingo!
13/07/2025 00:24:21
All considered, and time and emotions, Evertonia is doing well
Viva Santo Domingo!
13/07/2025 16:05:41
Very informative and interesting article.
There’s room for both Evertonia and Toffeeweb, as far as I’m concerned.
hopefully Lyndon won’t be as quick to ban people for minor misdemeanours like someone does elsewhere.
13/07/2025 16:52:15
Great background about Barry. Hopefully there will be plenty more positives to add over the next few years with The Blues
13/07/2025 17:53:23
Adding my kudos to the quality of the writing here, which far exceeds anything else out there about our beloved Toffees.
It seems to me one big obstacle to increasing readership is that fans on these types of sites want engagement in the comments section, but they also want the conversation to be ongoing and immediately available when there’s big news, like a signing, a match result, etc. Because there’s so much more thought and effort put into writing on Evertonia, and because people nowadays have no ability to be patient or seek delayed gratification, other sites (which shall go unnamed) will generate and maintain more engagement because the content comes out sooner and more often — even if much of it is garbage.
It’s a sad state of affairs, but my hope is that the move to Evertonia is slow but consistent now, then all at once when there’s a critical mass over here. But breaking old habits is a difficult thing.
14/07/2025 12:44:01
Lyndon, Jeff, Jonathon etc. I recommend Evertonia to all my blue mates, hopefully as the new season approaches they will engage more.
I never managed to sign up with toffeeweb…there always seemed to be a technical hitch when I tried, I think we need regular users of both sites to ‘nudge’ readers/contributors in this direction….
18/07/2025 17:18:43
This is the good stuff.
I'm not choosing sides on websites for Everton supporters. Still, with Lyndon's departure from TW, I was concerned that the really top-quality writing skill would go with him. Which, mostly, it has.
So, "Ditto" on all the kudos you're receiving for the article, Eli. First-rate stuff.
19/07/2025 06:58:31
A truly excellent article.
Thank you greatly El.
I remember being filled with optimism and excitement when we signed Sandro Ramirez after the in depth background on the OS about his meterioric rise from humble beginnings.
This is different though.
If Tierno can learn quickly and cope well (as well as Beto does would be outstanding) with the physical challenging of battling Premier league centre halves, we could strike gold here. Especially so if he can time his runs to avoid frequently being caught offside. I have a feeling we will be impressed with this man's finishing ability. A tall, fast, strong, striker who is a deadly first time finisher.
An even better version of Alexander Isak? Yes please! No pressure lad. And very good luck.
Bon chance Tierno. UTFT.
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09/07/2025 20:03:13
A superb in depth article that goes much deeper than the usual player bio does. It gives us supporters an imvaluable insight into what we are getting for our money. I, for one, like what I see and have high hopes for the lad. I watched his initial interview on Everton TV beforehand and liked what I saw on that too.
If he lives up to my initial expectations we will all be very happy.
I also want to see him working with Beto to see how it goes. Beto MUST NOT be sold this window.