We’re moving back to Barry: how Thierno Barry is scoring when it counts for Villarreal
Last season, whilst FC Basel were struggling in the relegation playoffs there was one player who caught my eye. Perhaps it was due to his unique name, perhaps it was due to his fine goalscoring record. Whatever it was, Thierno Barry ended with 12 goals and 5 assist`s in all competition for Basel, in what was there only real bright spot. But 12 goals for a 21 year old striker in the Swiss League by itself is not exactly record-breaking stuff.
However, to me it was actually about the nature of the goals: Barry didn’t record a single goal until the 30th January 2024, meaning he had gone 6 months without finding the net. But then, a brace to secure a 3-1 away win at Winterthur started something. Suddenly, the only goal in a home win against St. Gallen, a crucial goal away to Yverdon, a 2 minute brace in the cup quarter final against Lugano. Even a consolation goal against league leaders Young Boys: Barry had arrived. To close out the season, he had another brace against Lausanne-Ouchy to begin the run in and kept scoring from there.
This was around the time I began to take notice, and that intrigue only increased when he began the 2024/25 season as if he hadn’t taken a 2-month break. On the first game of the season he bagged 2 against Lausanne, another 2 against Grasshopper, and on his last game (a 6-0 thrashing to Servette) he go the opener. Start as you mean to go on. I believe that month of August alone was enough to make up for his wastefulness in front of goal in 2023, as Basel have seemed to carry that spirit currently top of the Swiss Super League. And whilst it is now Shaqiri making things happen (as previously covered just a week ago), Thierno Barry got his big move.
As soon as I saw the pictures of Barry in the famous light yellow of Villarreal, I knew it would just work. A very hard-working club, Villarreal are massive overachievers – many the biggest we have seen in the modern era. It’s a town of just over 50,000 people but with a stadium that fills half that. But don’t get it twisted, this is a club that knows where they belong, unphased by their much larger neighbours to the south in Valenica. In fact, you have to go back to the 2018/19 season to see a season where Valencia finished above Villarreal. Since then, Villarreal have finished in a European spot in all but one season (last year). And this season looks no different, as the club from the east of Iberia sit in a comfy 5th place, a spot that is good enough for Champions League qualification.
And Barry has adjusted to life in the big time pretty well. Even without European football, the Yellow Submarine have allowed for good squad rotation and given him plenty of minutes, starting 24 games this season. Barry has paid this back with 11 La Liga goals and 3 assists, 0.45 per 90. Now these numbers aren’t world class by any stretch of the imagination, but for a man who was playing in the Belgian 2nd division 2 years ago I’d say that it’s completely surpassed my expectations. Barry has put up some memorable performances this year, including a hattrick away to Leganes, a goal and assist against Las Palmas and a man of the match performance at home to Girona.
But it doesn’t end there, because when you look into the timing of his goals they show the underlying trends. Of his 14 goal contributions in La Liga (11 goals and 3 assists), Barry scored or assisted to directly impact the score of the game 10 times. That means that only 4 of his G/As this season have been when his team was already winning. Barry has directly contributed to 10 points alone, meaning without him, Villarreal would be in 7th place, only in a Europa League place.
All in all, Barry’s ability to change games is invaluable and Villarreal will need that scoring form to continue if they want to secure Champions League for the first time in 3 years.
