Take a quick glance at the list of longest serving Premier League managers and you can see that Sir Alex Ferguson and Arsene Wenger are out on their own, each of them keeping charge of their respective clubs for a combined total of 40 years. Following behind them though, quietly going about his work is one David Moyes, the canny Scotsman, who is about to enter his tenth year in charge of Everton. It is testament to the man’s ability that he has lasted this long in the cut-throat world of top flight management.
Moyes, 48, was poached from Preston North End in March 2002 and quickly went about his business; steering the Merseyside club to safety in his first campaign and taking them to Champions League qualification within three years.
His continued efforts with the Toffees on a shoestring budget have seen the Scotsman receive warm accolades from people involved in the game; people who recognise Moyes’ ability to get his players to play for him when the chips are down. Accolades don’t win you trophies though and boy, would Everton fans love some silverware at their club right now.
Chairman Bill Kenwright has come under fierce criticism from sections of Everton’s support who want him to sell up and attract some investment. Add to this, the fact that the club are having to sell some of their best players to balance the books (see Mikel Ateta this summer) and you can see why the fans’ frustrations have boiled over. So much so, that the Blue Union fans’ group have already staged a protest this season and are currently lining up their second one, kindly pleading with Mr Kenwright ‘If you love the club set it free’.
A team like Everton and a manager like David Moyes would be very deserving of an investment, the reasons for this being three-fold. First of all, the manager has proved his worth in his ten years at the club and whoever does take over should know they can expect nothing but good things from the man leading the troops. Secondly, they have a rich history (nine league titles, five FA Cups) and have served in the top flight longer than any other team, currently in their 108th season. They have more than earned their place in and amongst the elite – that investment could take them and their loyal fans just that step further. Finally, Moyes has a fairly decent squad which is in just in need of some fine tuning. They have players of the calibre of Tim Cahill, Jack Rodwell, Phil Jagielka and Louis Saha, all of which bring a number of essential qualities to the table.
In this summer’s transfer window, Everton were the only club not to spend any money, a worrying sign of the current financial plight they find themselves in. Moyes did move to sign Denis Stracqualarsi from Tigre and Royston Drenthe from Real Madrid, both of whom are on loan from their respective clubs till the end of this season, but these are only temporary fixes and the Scot needs more bodies in his wafer-thin squad.
They are sorely missing a striker who can bag the goals – Saha is technically very good but not a goalscorer – and a creative midfielder who can unlock defences with that one incisive pass. This is a hole which needs to be plugged following the defection of Spaniard Mikel Arteta to Arsenal.
Everton, one of the Premier League’s more respected clubs, are in danger of being left out in the cold. I feel potential investors could miss a trick if Moyes and his nucleus of players aren’t bought up by a wealthy benefactor. It’s the least they deserve.
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