Everton not ready for the the Premier League season, warns David Moyes

Moyes might not have the quality or numbers he would like to have as yet, but surely the players he does have should be getting close to being fully prepared?

We lost Calvert-Lewin, Harrison and Doucoure, which is 3 pluses as far as I'm concerned. And we're never any good in pre-season.

I wish we'd sort out a couple more transfers though.

If we don't get a central midfielder, then Harrison & Tim should be given their head.

It was as sure as a dump in the morning that it was gonna be a farce.

No way were TFG replacing the exodus and adding more which we so desperately needed. As I stated to much derision.

However, it is Moyes's job to rally the few into a winning position.

Crying weakens his authority in the dressing room, training pitch, boardroom and everywhere. Agents add another 50% minimum because he has weakened his hand.

I moan about lack of players Davie, not you. Your job was to get the leavers replaced, but you failed. You should have stayed at home to secure more numbers rather than a pointless US trip. Tell TFG to eat grit coz you need players and that won't happen in TrumpLand.

Your job is now to get them to be ready for the start of the season with a smile and words of valour and encouragement. Well done for fucking that up too!

Moyes worked with small budgets for years under Kenwright. He knows how to get the players to work hard and to cover various positions. When the windows shuts, that's when you have to work with what you've got. For now, be ambitious and sign the players required.

I get what Moyes is saying though. It is a bit Catch-22. We want to improve, not sign like-for-like replacements for the players who have left, because the ones who have left weren't good enough.

But getting that profile of player to sign for us is nigh-on impossible. It's going to take time. It feels like if we could get one big name in, everything becomes easier. Grealish or Luiz maybe. But it's easier said than done.

Do you think we won't sign any more players in the next 4 weeks or so after the Sky money turns up?

Apparently Forest want 5 players; the Palace manager has been complaining about their lack of signings; West Ham want players; Newcastle fans and manager are complaining; Spurs need to off load players before they buy.

Should all of their managers be criticised too, Martin?

To be fair, you have been consistent in your head falling off since June.

Sadly, he has a point: 5 or 6 new players before the season starts, pretty unlikely. If it does happen, they will probably be loans, a couple of pros who can do a job as the rebuild is pushed out further.

I'm not blaming Moyes for the situation we are in, nor the way we are playing, or even selection choices. No, what we are seeing is the legacy cost of the past God knows how many years of sheer incompetence of ownership, management and business failure.

No player of quality, faced with a choice of Premier League clubs, is picking Everton. I don't blame them. If I was on the outside looking in, I wouldn't.

TFG have to prove themselves every bit as much as Moyes does. They are right to fix the business first but they may well have to pay over the odds to get quality of playing staff to look seriously at joining us.

If I was Desperate Dan, I would land my Spitfire on Formby Beach and walk along the shore to Bramley-Moore Dock and tell Moyes to shut up and do his job. Public, albeit it veiled, criticism of others or sheer disappointment in not bringing in better players, is not helping the cause, sends a wrong message to possible acquisitions who know how desperate we are, agents aren't stupid.

People talk of "Hollywood Managers" but they can draw players who would not look twice at the club otherwise. Perhaps such an appointment would have been made as a statement of intent by the new owners, but we have persisted with David Moyes.

Of course, it also depends on the owner's expectations and objectives on and off the pitch. How much there is available, and what the measure of success is to them in what time frame.

We knew beforehand that communication was almost non-existent from TFG, as experienced elsewhere, but expectations with the new stadium amongst the fans were high, mine included, and by the sound of it Moyes too.

What we are seeing is the gap between legacy cost and expectation, reality bites. Our esteemed manager now has to earn his coin over a season with whatever we can get. We don't need reminding what we are short of, we need to stop the bleed, plug the gaps, and find players who will make a difference.

I'm made up he's said that the majority of this squad just is not good enough.

We know it, they know it, but more importantly, the manager knows it.

We know we want 5+ good players; when we get them and settled in, we will be fine.

We played well and got some very good results when Moyes took over last season. we still have most of the players from those games.

I have said previously that we will miss Doucoure though, its a pity he wanted too much money.

What I don't like is Moyes publically talking down the ability of our existing players — it might make them more keen to do well but it can't do their confidence any good.

And after the bleedin' obvious comes your starter for 6 more from the left.....haven't Roma got any we could borrow,well, we know they should have a spare right back, compliments of errmm.....

At least the last person who said he could not keep us in the premiership or do better had the grace to quietly hand in his notice before it was too late. The is how you got your job and very high salary Mr Moyes.

Has Thomas Frank (Spurs 17th position) stated a lack of confidence in their team to do better in the next season?
Can anyone think of any other player or team that been told they are not good enough especially when we might not actually get any stars of Ekitike or Isak standard.
You publicly criticised Patterson last year diminishing his confidence to my knowledge no other manager has done that.

If you publicly feel that way you know the honourable thing to do BEFORE you spend all the money buying players that your replacement, who hopefully believes that we will do really well next season, inherits from you.

Warren Buffett springs to mind when choosing Managers. He does not look at last year results he looks at results over a period of years with the same management and then chooses the company to buy. Klopp, Slot, Thomas Frank and even Howe have all performed very well with very limited resources before getting their premiership manager positions.
It would not surprise me if Spurs has a top 7 finish.

The corrupt F.A. caused a lot of the present problems by allowing New Ownership at Chelsea to buy all the titles and trophies available by bringing in all the top players world wide.This was followed at Man City and it inflated the prices of the average player. When the new ownership at Newcastle who are able to buy every club in the league they panicked and brought the new financial rules into play.

Everton are now in the crosshairs of the F.A, and all though they have the backing of the new ownership who have the finances to purchase the type and quality of players we need they are restricted in what they can spend.

There is the problem, we need players, the ownership has the finances but we are restricted in how much we pay for a player, plus we need more than one, from a market that wants top money for average players.

Have you been watching the transfer window? Have you seen how the top 4 have strengthened?

I don’t think it is now possible for a manager to transform a club without a competitive budget and the effective behind the scenes team / capability. Often the two things go hand in hand.

They are right to fix the business first

Yes. They are. They bought a club that was in serious financial trouble facing insolvency, and now we're expecting them to break the bank to climb the table? Nah.

This is preseason. I don't care at all about it. It doesn't matter what the result is.

This team is more than capable of finishing top half, and I personally think we will.

Moyes is going to say things publicly to motivate players and try to draw blood from a stone to get new players from ownership.

There's nothing to see here. Wait until we're 4-5 games in and then make an assessment.

We're fine. The squad is a good one, Moyes knows what he's doing, we'll finish top half and when comparing that to relegation flirting the last 3 of 4 years, I'll take a slow ascent up the table. And I will bet that's exactly what will happen the next 2-3 years.

I will take any friendly bets on us finishing 10th or better. Let me know if you're up for it.

"If Sunderland fans were looking for an upbeat message when Moyes arrived, they were to be sadly mistaken when he flagged up a season-long relegation fight after only his second game in charge, a 2-1 home loss to Middlesbrough.

Asked about supporters fearing a season-long struggle, he said: "Well, they would probably be right."

Realism is one thing - negativity and defeatism is another. This was a message that was badly received by Sunderland's fans and set the tone for a season that turned into a long, slow, painful, joyless march into the Championship.

It was also a message delivered with 10 days of the August transfer window remaining, hardly enticing words to potential new signings.

And, damningly, it became a self-fulfilling prophecy as Moyes was unable to do anything to defy his own ominous predictions for Sunderland's season."

And without his best mate behind him, these Yanks will pull the trigger on him the first sniff they get of defeatism and a potential loss of revenue.

We've learnt enough over the last decade to know that all those 6th-place finishes were just lipstick on a pig.

He's drinking in the last chance saloon is our Davey.

📊 Here's a breakdown of Everton's average league finishes before and after David Moyes's first managerial stint:

⚽ Pre-Moyes Era (Premier League: 1992–2002)

From the formation of the Premier League in 1992 up to Moyes's appointment in March 2002, Everton's average finishing position was:

• Average finish: 13.6th
• Best finish: 6th (1995–96)
• Worst finish: 17th (1997–98 and
🧠 Moyes Era (2002–2013)

During Moyes' 11 full seasons in charge:

• Average finish: 7.5th
• Best finish: 4th (2004–05)
• Worst finish: 17th (2003–04)

He consistently kept Everton in the top half, often challenging for European spots despite limited resources.

📉 Post-Moyes Era (2013–2024)

From Moyes' departure to the end of the 2023–24 season:

• Average finish: 11.5th

Give him some bloody players, Friedkins!!!

With regard to mentality, when he joined Everton, he was a failed former footballer who no one knew, who had briefly managed Preston North End. He was grateful for the job.

As years went by, he became more miserable, moaning about "knives to gunfights" etc, then acted like he was the Lord Mayor going off to better things at Man Utd.

Then he arrived at dysfunctional Sunderland with an entitled attitude and immediately said the team was crap and would get relegated – which they did.

He failed in Spain, no one would give him a job, so he had to pipe down until West Ham tossed him a bone out of desperation.

He went in there, quietly did a good job, was unfairly replaced. Then, once he went back and had a bit of success, he started his public moaning and negativity again until they sacked him.

He comes into Everton feeling like he is hot stuff on the back of the Euro trophy at West Ham and the manner in which we begged him to come back. So he's back to moaning and being miserable again because he feels like he is doing us a favor.

Moyes has only two mindsets. The beggar grateful for scraps or the big knob about town who thinks he is hot stuff. In the former mindset, he does well… but in the latter, he tends to burn bridges, alienate players and fans, and fail.

From there, Moyes will be expected to finish between about 8th and 14th – not because Moyes has a glass ceiling but because the squad does.

Expectations would only go up if, say, we were to land all of Gallagher, Grealish, Luiz and Kubo and a few other quality players too for squad depth. This seems unlikely.

If that causes some despair, check back in for the 2027-28 season when we should be more competitive.

Moyes may have been unknown to you but he won the League Two title in his second or third year as manager of Preston and then took them to the play-offs in their first year in League One.

Additionally, he made footballing headlines when he turned down the opportunity to become Alex Ferguson's No 2,

He was generally regarded as a manager who would very soon be plying his trade in the Premier League.

No didn't turn down anything. In Moyes's own words

"‘I met Fergie in the year they won the Champions League,' he said. ‘He asked me to have a cup of tea with him. He was looking for an assistant. I met him but he gave the job to McClaren.

‘I was fine with that because I was enjoying what I was doing at Preston, but if that opportunity had come I wouldn't have turned it down."

As for the League Two title, well lots of people have won that and we have never heard of most of them.

I agree. I would guess TFG are not concerned and have a longer-term plan. That plan is not necessarily for Moyes's short tenure but beyond that.

If we finish 10th this season, TFG will see it as a move in the right direction. They may well be the cog in the machine insisting on Transfer Deadline Day signings when they know values are lower and back in our price range.

All a guess, but it does look like it is panning out this way.

Fair enough but that's certainly how it was reported at the time.

And because of that and his achievements with Preston, Moyes was far from an unknown.

I can still visualise Moyes making that Sunderland statement. He was not only lambasted by Sunderland fans, he got it hot and heavy on ToffeeWeb as well.

It was a disastrous statement. He did the same at West Ham, but not to the same extent. He again gave the fans and ToffeeWeb the ilk.

But this repetative statements in the USA, with more press conferences to come in the land of 'Remember the Alamo' is a whole new ballgame.

I would advise him to shut the fuck up (it was part of my selling process to say this to myself) because American Professional Business Managers especially would see this as a real red flag.

David Moyes is making all the wrong noises about Everton's new era — Kevin Garside in The i Paper, 31 July 2025

David Moyes is missing the boat because he lacks the fantasy factor — Kevin Garside in The Independent, Monday 18 June 2012.

When you look at the midfield and the forwards, though, it hardly sends the pulse racing.

You don't rate him, Kieran. That's fine. I back up my statements with his record which I have produced above.

I presume you didn't like any of the managers who have come and gone since he left first time?

Why was he a ‘failed former footballer'? He played football at decent level, didn't he? Tell me the level you played at?

Anyway, I can't be bothered arguing. This summer is draining me after what we were all told would be an unprecedented summer.

Let's chase another manager out and we can blame the next manager and then the next and then the next when they don't have Everton in the Champions League.

We've a new stadium that isn't home that could quickly become a millstone if we don't win games early in our occupation.

The squad's weaker, apart from the late flourish to last season after the early uptick, the squad slumped. No one joining in the next 3 weeks is likely to make a significant impact in our early games.

When does the squad land back in the UK? Next week is a write-off in terms of preparation. That's 2 weeks to a full, raucous Elland Rd.

Let's hope Beto gets a breakaway goal about the 20-minute mark to dampen them down. Hope springs eternal?

Aye okay mate…. Oh yeah, a mauling from Man Utd still to come? I don't find these friendlies very friendly – we keep getting pumped. Still, Roma will have orders not to roast us… won't they?

Depending on an individual's stance, that article sums it up quite well.

He turned this club around in weeks and got us safe quicker than anybody expected. Not only did he get us safe but his record managing these misfits since he arrived was a Top 6 performance.

Despite him saying, even when getting the unexpected results, that we needed more quality, and now he is being criticized for us not adding quality to the team.

The Friedkins have supposedly put together, we are being told, a great new backroom structure to improve all areas of the club.

We have lost 3 regulars from last season: Doucoure, Calvert-Lewin and Young, so wouldn't any manager worth his salt be demanding that we replace these players with better quality?

So far, we have signed a backup keeper, a young full-back who will need time, a young striker who again will need time, and made the Alcaraz loan permanent.

Now I don't see how in the near future they improve on what we had and, listening to some, Moyes should not voice his concern.

What he did last season has earned him the right to speak out as, after all, if we struggle because we didn't sign enough quality players, it's Moyes who will be sacked – not the backroom staff that the Friedkins have put together.

The argument from some is he shouldn't have made this public and kept his concerns in house. Well, I am sure he has had conversations with the powers that be, and maybe he feels they aren't doing enough, so had to go public to let us fans know his thoughts.

Also the line about knocking the confidence out of his players by making these comments, both Pickford and Tarkowski have said we need signings, so are they wrong too?

I don't think many have issue with what he is saying. It's how and where he is saying it. As I said previously, he doesn't need to tell us what we already know and agree with.

But doing it in public is likely going to rile the board and owners in my opinion.

You say most people agree with his sentiments — it's just where he is voicing those opinions and how he has voiced his concerns over the lack of quality players being brought to the club.

So Danny, where and how does he voice his concerns, as the Friedkins don't seem to be addressing the problems and things need sorting — and quick.

It's perfectly plausible that the new owners are on board with Moyes telling the fans that we are trying to bring in our top targets but – because of the mess the Moshiri years left Everton in... it's not that easy.

Moyes has made a few statements to this effect in the last week with no push back from the new owners.

They won't be back till Monday at the earliest, so another 4 crucial days of the window and the ever shrinking time till the first game are lost.

Even if we sign the RW and CM we so desperately need before the Leeds game, they have at best one fixture, if we can get it done in time for Roma, to bed in, otherwise it's mould whoever they are into a team on the job / mid season.

God I hate the bloody transfer window - bring back the days when you could just sign the players / positions you needed when you needed them, not in this arbitrary, maddening period.

"clearly we aren't going to sign anybody meaningful whilst Moyes is out of the country"

Clearly... why?

Sol sidibe u18 England international to psv for £2.5m. Possibly missed a trick in not signing, and loaning out.

Simpson pussey to celtic loan.

Marc guiu to Sunderland on loan.

All good bits of business.

Do we not have email, video calls, zoom

Most neogiations are done on what’s app anyway

Plus Moyes will not be neogiating transfer fees, wages etc

If we don’t agree deals it’s not Because the manager is in America

1. Statements about Club Operations:

If Moyes made public comments criticizing Everton's transfer activity or readiness for the season:It would usually breach internal communications protocols, even if not explicitly violating confidentiality clauses.

Clubs often require media comments to be cleared through the PR department or Chief Executive’s office, especially those that could damage the club’s public image or relations with fans/owners.

2. Confidentiality Clauses:

His contract (reportedly £12.5 million/year ) would almost certainly contain clauses around:.Non-disclosure of sensitive operational, financial, or strategic information.

Restrictions on speaking publicly about club policies, especially regarding transfer targets, budgets, or internal disagreements.

Breaking such clauses could lead to disciplinary action, fines, or even contract termination in extreme cases.

3. Reputational Clauses and Conduct:

High-level football contracts usually include "conduct" clauses covering behavior that may bring the club into disrepute.Managers are expected to be ambassadors of the club, so negative public comments — especially unauthorized ones — could violate those standards.

Davy Boy you are on dangerous ground and there will be a Army of Lawyers, with American Owners, (especially with such comments made in their own backyard).So expect to get a talking to on no uncertain terms.Think about it Davy breach of contract with no compensation and a costly legal process.

Had we said no and stayed here, we would still be in the same situation regarding lack of transfers. There is always someone here who can oversee any transfers. We even have wonderful technology whereby you can speak to others……it’s called a phone, or even Zoom via a laptop.

Plenty of clubs have completed transfers whilst they have been in far flung places, and we should be no different. It doesn’t matter whether Moyes, or whoever is in this country or not, the simple fact is players are saying no to us, probably for footballing reasons, not because they haven’t been able to speak to Moyes face to face.

So whether we sign anyone tomorrow, Saturday, Sunday or the middle of next week it won’t be because those players spoke to Moyes face to face, it will be because they want to join us.

Who would play David Moyes though?

He will also put pressure on owners.

I don't like the first thing. I like the second thing.

Reported united are making £7.5m from it.

I remember thinking that Moyes was just being a defeatist, once again, when he made that statement, but now I’m a lot older, (which doesn’t necessarily mean I’m wiser) I now think he was just stating the obvious, just like he his doing now.

Sunderland were very poor although they were not helped by some very poor signings , and although Everton, are nowhere near as poor, David Moyes knows that if we are to progress, and not be down amongst the dead men, once again, that we definitely need a lot more?

Moyes, is not doing anything more than just stating the obvious, to anyone who has watched our last few games, even if it is only pre-season.

I see the current comments mainly for the awareness of the targeted players, their agents and their current clubs.

If they are faking their reticence as a negotiating tactic then they may miss out on a move that suits everyone.

I think that is what is behind the casting of a wide net in terms of targets, and rapidly moving on and testing the water somewhere else at the first sign of reluctance to deal.

Time will tell if it’s the wrong way to do things but it seems better than wasting too much of it doggedly pursuing players who genuinely aren’t interested. If they’re just playing hard to get they may ditch that approach to avoid ending up with Hobson’s choice.

"I was so much older then... I'm younger than that now"

That's a tune...

It's been the case for decades - obviously. We're still up shit creek financially, big-time, courtesy of shithouse luvvy and those he chose to serve, chiefly himself, to the massive cost of us lot.

Friedkin, if he hadn't realised previously, may well be looking for a get-out already. It wouldn't surprise me because to even achieve top-half is going to take megabucks and talent in the club.

Right now there's scant evidence of it.

Sure I can't prove it, yes of course video tech exists, but I'll give you a friendly bet we sign nobody before Everton return to the UK, then suddenly at least one deal materialises next week...

At his present time of life and it must be said, bank balance, is he right to speak out, or does he keep the internal dirty washing in the cupboard?

But if it needs saying out loud, then maybe it has to be said.

Also am I right in thinking that the 'Big 3' new appointments do t even start until September?

If, as has happened before under Moyes, that we're on 3pts deep into October - well there's only one person getting the sack.

Though the nagging 'minority report' in my head is saying...

Not ready? Not fuckin ready! It's your very well paid task to get them fuckin ready, start dealing with the 'what is' not the 'what it ought to be' start kicking the hair-dryers and tea cups about, you're the Manager, start Managing the well paid strollers.

I think that is probably not the reason we haven't bought, but if you're right, it does not augur well.

I think that is probably not the reason we haven't bought, but if you're right, it does not augur well.

It's always fascinating, but almost never factual.

Bill #63, agreed. Moyes turned last season around, but the glass ceiling we're up against now is the team itself, not Moyes. And that takes time to resolve. Not just one or two transfer windows for sure.

I didn't want Moyes back, but he's doing his job and doing it well. However, like all managers he will reach the end of the line. I feel certain that by the time this club is ready to step back on the big stage, somebody else will be leading us there.

The summer is not going to plan for TFG, Kinnear or Hammond, and Moyes is stating the obvious by pointing that out. I have no problem with it, as it is his job as a senior leader to point out issues and put healthy tension into the club to resolve them.

Kinnear and Hammond are not doing their jobs well in relation to recruitment this summer. It was Kinnear who introduced the new structure removing the DoF, therefore he is accountable.

He has already lost a lot of credibility with his “judge me on the 2nd September comment”. If he has only brought the players in for Moyes on 1st September then he has done badly. It will be an interesting test of the new culture in the club whether they appreciate Moyes’s candour.

Complacency, poor results, low accountability, towing the corporate line, low standards, poor individual performance with nil consequences. We tried that for 30 years and it didn’t go well.

Speak up Moysey.

I, and most I've read on here don't disagree with what he's said.

For him to use the supporters as his tool for being honest, I find odd. He's telling us what we already know and have done for several seasons, so I don't know who his message is directed at. He doesn't need to tell me what I already know and have done for years. So don't use the supporters as justification for being direct.

He could, should and probably is, having this conversation with the CEO and TFG behind the scenes, so (Brendan), he may well have them on board.

Announcing it in public in that manner conveys a negative message to would be signings. If, for example, Fofana is watching, what impression does that give?

Moyes has a history of this type of thing. People have already mentioned Sunderland. No matter how honest, is that what players and supporters wanted to hear going into a season? Hardly motivational.

Likewise, although maybe realistic, his comments about the then reigning champions, Manchester United "aspiring" to be like Manchester City. That did not help his cause against an already disgruntled Old Trafford support base.

It is clear that some agree with him coming out by stating the obvious, others don't think it was the appropriate thing to do.

Maybe it's his choice of language. He can go head-to-head and say all this behind closed doors.

In public, maybe something along the lines of "we know we have a thin squad and have identified players that will improve the squad. Everyone at the club is working hard to bring them in".

A play with words, but it comes across differently.