EXCLUSIVE: Former Everton striker Jermaine Beckford has been assessing the form of current Blues frontman Thierno Barry

Former Everton striker Jermaine Beckford insists he’s unconcerned by the number of chances that Thierno Barry is missing but he wants to see the Frenchman be more like his idol Romelu Lukaku and increase the physicality in his play because he likes “to beat people up” on the football pitch.

With last season’s top scorer Beto sold on transfer deadline day of the summer window and a late collapse of a £40million move for USA World Cup star Folarin Balogun from Monaco, the Blues were left with Barry as their solitary option up front.

Beckford was a prolific lower division striker with Leeds United, recording goal returns of 20, 34 and 30 in his final three seasons at Elland Road before David Moyes took a punt on him on a Bosman-style free transfer in the summer of 2010 when his contract expired at the Yorkshire club.

Although the Ealing-born player only had one full season on Merseyside, among his 10 goals were a derby strike against Liverpool at Anfield and a spectacular solo effort to beat Chelsea – the club he’d played for as a youngster – on a day that Carlo Ancelotti was sacked as visiting manager before departing Goodison Park.

And speaking courtesy of FreeBets, home of the best uk betting sites, the 42-year-old told the ECHO: “It’s definitely a far from ideal scenario that Everton and David Moyers have found themselves in. The summer was an interesting time, it was challenging and tricky.

“Unfortunately, they weren’t able to get one or two of their top targets over the line. It seems as though they didn’t quite offer the right amount of money for key men and left it a little bit too late.

“It’s left David Moyes a bit short. The frustrating part for me is there’s really been no excuse not to have back up for Thierno and also, nobody is pushing him as well.

“Overall though, what Barry is doing is he’s finding himself in the right place and he’s scoring goals. We could argue we want to see more from him and we could argue he should do better whether that’s holding the ball up or making runs down the channels.

“But his goals ratio this season, he’s scored three in seven Premier League games, so that’s almost one in two and in all competitions, he’s got six in nine, so that’s two in three. So, he’s not actually doing that badly.”

However, football statisticians have calculated that Barry has missed 12 ‘big chances’ already in the Premier League, which is four more than the next highest, Rayan of Bournemouth on eight followed by Bryan Mbeumo of Manchester United on six.

Beckford said: “Well, you know, there’s a couple of ways to look at that stat. Ultimately, yes, when you’re comparing him to Erling Haaland or, and I’m not being funny, you look at Dominic Calvert-Lewin, if you look at the opportunities that those boys are taking, the scoring percentage per chances they’re getting is really high.

“They’re like upwards of 20%. These are freaks of nature currently, but that’s not something I’m expecting to continue for the duration of the season.

“But the perspective I take on the amount of opportunities, the big chances that Thierno is missing, is more along the lines of, that he’s finding himself in those right areas to get those chances.

“You know, it could only be a matter of time before he hits himself another hat-trick, gets a brace or goes on a lovely run again where he scores in three, four, five, six games in a row. If he wasn’t getting in those in those areas, that for me would be a bigger concern.

“So, as long as his confidence is high and he’s getting in those areas, long may it continue.”

Can Barry start using his 6ft 5in frame more effectively though and emulate one of his boyhood heroes, Lukaku, who remains Everton’s all-time leading scorer in the Premier League with 68 goals?

Beckford, who started out at non-League Wealdstone, learned his trade among the rough and tumble of the lower divisions and said: “If you just look at his physical stats solely, so like his height, weight, et cetera, you would say this guy is going to be an absolute monster, a beast. In that respect, he’s a bit like Romelu Lukaku.

“You know, he’s got a massive stature about himself, but Rom threw himself about. He got stuck in, but he was also unbelievable in front of goals in front of goal.

“You know, throughout his whole career, he’s managed to average a goal every other game across almost 700 matches which is unbelievable. So, when you’re looking at Barry’s stats solely, you would expect him to be a lot more physical, but not every player is going to be physical.

“Not every player is going to be quick, not every player is going to be great in front of goal, not every player is going to be great in the air. So, you have to try and find out where his strong attributes lie and home in on those areas.

“I would like to see a little bit more physicality from him, but that’s just because I like to beat people up. You know, I like that but not everybody does, you know?

“So, I think it’s more about his team-mates understanding where his strengths are and working more towards that. They’re starting to get that.

“He’s been at the club for almost a year and a half now. He’s playing regularly and the more often you play the more your team-mates know how to give you the ball or where to put the ball.”