David Moyes

[Granite]

If you’re in your 30s and didn’t even enjoy the Moyes years, then you’ve had a fucking shit time as an Evertonian.

[MayorFarnham]

We've been had here

We are slightly complicit. Another manager going into a job interview with us holding all the cards.

[sam of the south]

I think it’s pretty accurate.

I’m not reading too much into the contract.

We gave Sam an 18 month deal but had no intention of keeping him on. I think the same will be happening with Moyes.

I just don’t see him moving the needle enough still be here next season.

Agreed.

He was just what we needed bitd but he’s one of yesterday’s men now

[sam of the south]

Whether the input is qualitative (e.g. the eye test) or quantitative, it’s not a massive deal as long as the output is intentional and carefully considered.

Clough/Taylor could be considered analytical darlings for the way they identified players who had one or two warts that made them undervalued and then coached around/through those alleged defects but I doubt that they were using methods that we’d consider analytical today.

However he sees himself, Moyes is methodical and what he does generally has a clear purpose. It can sometimes be to his detriment, I’m sure I’m not the only one who remembers him persisting with a broken team for 2-3 matches to be certain it’s broken before adjusting (one of the reasons he’s not fit for a potential league winner like United). But largely it generates teams that are effective at nullifying the opposition and have a few effective ways of creating chances themselves. And then there’s his general excellence at identifying talent at other clubs and buying low to acquire it.

The eye test is still data, just a bit more prone to bias than things that are quantitative if you’re not careful. Moyes is analytical whether he sees himself that way or not. There’s a reason he’s had more longevity at clubs than the dinosaurs many would lump him in with.

Edit: Hope you had a laugh at the straggling “He’s anal” if you saw this before I caught my editing error.

Yeah, I feel you.

Not sure how he’d deal with having an analytics dept foist upon him, though.

Plus, recruitment won’t be his remit, would it?

Which, as you said, he was rather good at.

And I missed the anal thing, unfortunately.

[Fieldy618]

Yeah not for me, this. Can't see it ending well.

[Lazarou II]

The Everton emotional hokey cokey.

I'm in, I'm out, in, out, in, out Moyes

Doing a Ranieri Roma on us with this, which in fairness is kind of working.

[Shogun]

Be interesting to see how the dynamic between owners and manager holds up.

Moyes (and his pet Neville) annoyed the fuck out of me in the first spell because it was all about how grateful we should be to see Everton top 7 and in Europe whilst constantly playing us down as a club despite our stature in the game. It's why that great team with some excellent players are remembered ultimately for winning absolutely nothing and when you look back... We didn't even come close.

That was easy to do when Kenwright was running the club. Are the Friedkins going to buy into a "Knife to a gunfight" mentality? Will they be happy with stagnation? Will they accept not getting near a trophy? Obviously we've got some way to go before that's even an issue but 2 and a half years can be a long time and I'm not sure Moyes & Friedkin is the most cohesive partnership in that regard.

[Cereal Killer]

We are slightly complicit. Another manager going into a job interview with us holding all the cards.

He even got the “I don’t want to be in a relegation battle” out beforehand so he can pretend he’s doing us a favour and take a premium paycheck for lowering his standards

[Robioto]

If you’re in your 30s and didn’t even enjoy the Moyes years, then you’ve had a fucking shit time as an Evertonian.

This is the thing for me, most of my best memories as an Everton fan is the Moyes era. I started supporting the club in 1993.

So while Moyes definitely had his moments, especially the way he left and what happened after he left, I definitely look back at most of his tenure quite fondly.

Do I want him back now? Not really. Do I think it makes sense given the circumstances? Yes I do.

I think he'd keep us up and would spend what ever money or loan slots we have wisely for our current predicament.

[kramer]

It's why that great team with some excellent players are remembered ultimately for winning absolutely nothing and when you look back... We didn't even come close.

Coming across as a complete Moyes apologist now but we were 1-0 up in an FA Cup final that we lurched into with injuries several key players (peak Arteta, peak Jagielka, Yakubu, etc.).

Doesn’t get much closer than that. We were right fucking there and I might’ve been able to compete with Chelsea for the full 90’ had we had Jags and Arteta, who played the best football of their careers that season (Jags/Lescott partnership, Arteta moving back to the middle and bossing it).

His conservatism let him down on numerous occasions after 2008-9 but he pushed a boulder up a hill to build a squad THAT good. Finishing 5th with Yobo, Yakubu, Arteta, and Anichebe (who was actually finding some form before Kevin Nolan stood on him with two legs) all sustaining bad injuries in the first half of the season was more of an accomplishment than he gets credit for.

Honorable mention for Sebastien Frey summoning superpowers to deny us the chance at the UEFA Cup when we absolutely battered Fiorentina at Goodison. Maybe he would’ve bottled it had we gone on, I just think he hit some horrible luck as the team was peaking from 2007-9 and he was never able to recover all the pieces because we never had any real money.

[Robioto]

Coming across as a complete Moyes apologist now but we were 1-0 up in an FA Cup final that we lurched into with injuries several key players (peak Arteta, peak Jagielka, Yakubu, etc.).

Doesn’t get much closer than that. We were right fucking there and I might’ve been able to compete with Chelsea for the full 90’ had we had Jags and Arteta, who played the best football of their careers that season (Jags/Lescott partnership, Arteta moving back to the middle and bossing it).

His conservatism let him down on numerous occasions after 2008-9 but he pushed a boulder up a hill to build a squad THAT good. Finishing 5th with Yobo, Yakubu, Arteta, and Anichebe (who was actually finding some form before Kevin Nolan stood on him with two legs) all sustaining bad injuries in the first half of the season was more of an accomplishment than he gets credit for.

Honorable mention for Sebastien Frey summoning superpowers to deny us the chance at the UEFA Cup when we absolutely battered Fiorentina at Goodison. Maybe he would’ve bottled it had we gone on, I just think he hit some horrible luck as the team was peaking from 2007-9 and he was never able to recover all the pieces because we never had any real money.

That Fiorentina game was a rollercoaster. We were so good to watch, so deserved to go through, then the heartbreak at the end. Only time I've properly shed a tear over Everton, I genuinely thought we were going to win that tournament.

[UnsyisaRhino]

I remember the 'Dithering Davey' nickname.
I remember the 'Make a change Moyes!' shouts.
I remember 'taking a knife to a gunfight'.
I remember the insulting offer for Baines and Fellaini.
I remember Bucharest.

I hated him by the end, and quite enjoyed his failure since. it's going to take a miracle to turn that around. I can't imagine I'm alone.

Says more about you than him that you've chosen to focus on those moments than a much longer list of good that he did. Especially as some of those things were cringe back then, never mind more than a decade later.

We've spent lots of time and money and got nowhere near the same level of performance in both leagues and cups that he achieved, and he's gone on to win something since. Not sure I'd call it a failure if he's not been a complete success, no manager is.

He's not my first pick but I understand why they've gone for him if they have.

[UnsyisaRhino]

This is the thing for me, most of my best memories as an Everton fan is the Moyes era. I started supporting the club in 1993.

So while Moyes definitely had his moments, especially the way he left and what happened after he left, I definitely look back at most of his tenure quite fondly.

Do I want him back now? Not really. Do I think it makes sense given the circumstances? Yes I do.

I think he'd keep us up and would spend what ever money or loan slots we have wisely for our current predicament.

This is exactly where I am.

Not what I want for our future, but not the worst pick based on our current circumstances.

I thought similar about Dyche though to be fair, so what the fuck do I know.

[Fynci]

Id describe it more like getting back with your misses who you were happily married to and then separated after she cheated on you 10 years ago, shes subsequently been hawked around the Village for the next 10 years, is now a bit haggered and well passed, but it'll do as your lonely and desperate!!

Exactly, as I said there is a bit of romanticism about it.

[Escalator]

If you’re in your 30s and didn’t even enjoy the Moyes years, then you’ve had a fucking shit time as an Evertonian.

Got to see , Lille, Bern, Basel, Wolfsburg, Lisbon with Davy and Roberto nothing with anyone since.