Everton midfielder Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall has gone to another level over the last couple of games, and the reason might be an uncomfortable truth for supporters and even David Moyes.

It's been an up-and-down campaign for Dewsbury-Hall after playing such a crucial role for the Toffees last term.

The English midfielder hasn't been at his best for the majority of the season, but he's certainly bounced back over the last couple of games.

Against Newcastle in the Carabao Cup, Dewsbury-Hall played in a slightly deeper role and was a controlling figure in the middle of the park for Everton.

Dewsbury-Hall set up Everton's third goal of the game, playing a perfect pass into the path of Thierno Barry, who finished well.

Against Newcastle when they went head-to-head in the Premier League once again on Monday evening, with the Toffees securing a 1-0 victory, and Dewsbury-Hall undoubtedly producing a man of the match performance.

Interestingly, Dewsbury-Hall's impressive pair of games has coincided with Jack Grealish being unavailable due to a disciplinary issue.

Dewsbury-Hall and Grealish certainly have a strong understanding on the pitch, regularly linking up on the left-hand side of the pitch.

When it works, Everton are a serious threat on the left, but it also makes them incredibly predictable. Dewsbury-Hall is a number 10 who should be looking to connect things on both sides of the pitch, but when Grealish is involved, he tends to favour that side quite significantly.

At times, it does become overkill, and we often see the right-hand side of Everton's attack regularly ignored, making them incredibly ineffective.

With Grealish missing for the last couple of games, we've seen Dewsbury-Hall go to the next level, and it certainly doesn't feel like a coincidence.

Dewsbury-Hall was more involved all over the pitch, rather than just on the left-hand side, and that made Everton look like more of a balanced team in the final third.

Dewsbury-Hall played a key role in Everton's opening goal of the game against Newcastle in the Premier League on Monday evening, slotting a perfect throughball to Tyrique George, who shot, and Thierno Barry fired home the rebound.

The uncomfortable truth

The uncomfortable truth is that Everton might be a better-functioning side when Grealish isn't in it, and Dewsbury-Hall is one of the players who benefits.

It's an uncomfortable truth for many reasons. Everton as a club invested a lot of money in Grealish, one of the highest-paid English footballers in the world, to play again this season, only to be let down by him.

The club might realise after the last two results that paying someone like Grealish so much money could have been better spent elsewhere.

It's an uncomfortable truth for Moyes, who is clearly a huge fan of Grealish given how much he prioritised playing him over others.

It's an uncomfortable truth for many supporters who, understandably, love Grealish.

On his day, Grealish is absolutely fantastic. Unfortunately, those days are few and far between now. He's let down the club, and the likes of Dewsbury-Hall have stepped up immensely.