Softfootball understands that James Tarkowski recently spoke candidly about his struggles at Everton, as well as the team’s recent form and how he has maintained the right mentality after spending a long period sidelined by injury.
As the Toffees prepare for a return trip to Turf Moor to face Burnley, James’ former club, there’s history everywhere for Tarkowski, and he doesn’t shy away from it, as was asked in a recent interview posted by Everton via their official X account.
They posted:
Tarky talks about changes in the squad ahead of a return to Turf Moor.
He said:
It’s nice to go back. But Everton’s my home now.
The 2025 season didn’t exactly roll out the red carpet. A rare hamstring injury, strange for a defender built like reinforced concrete, brought his campaign to a halt back in April. For a man who prides himself on availability, it hurt. Still, Tarkowski never disappeared.
When asked about the club’s form ahead of the game, he highlighted the recent setbacks of a 1–0 loss to Arsenal and a 2–0 Premier League defeat to Chelsea.
He said:
We’re on the back of two losses, but not necessarily two bad performances. The game at the weekend against Arsenal was always going to be tough, and we stuck right in there. We’re right in the game at the end without creating a whole lot of chances. The game finishes 1-0 with us attacking late on in the game against a team who’s top of the table, so we can’t be too disappointed with it. Before the Chelsea game we had four wins out of five, so we’ve been in a decent place.
Tarkowski is fully focused on the future. Under David Moyes, Everton are climbing, not loudly, not with fireworks, but steadily. Tenth place, structure restored, belief creeping back in.
Burnley, meanwhile, looks different. New faces, different challenges. But the emotions remain. Six-and-a-half years of graft, promotions, survival scraps, and heartbreak.
With Gueye and Ndiaye away at AFCON and Dewsbury-Hall sidelined, the responsibility grows. Tarkowski knows it.
He said:
We’ve lost a couple of important players, a couple of lads have gone to the AFCON. Kiernan’s got injured, so we’ve had to change our setup a little bit in terms of personnel and maybe style slightly. But we’ve still got a good team that’s getting put out there, so we’re expecting to put wins on the board.
Consistency may not always make the headlines, but it is Tarkowski’s trademark. Despite the lack of squad depth, he still believes Everton has a strong team.
