As David Moyes bid an emotional farewell to the Everton fans at Goodison Park today, what kind of shape is the Scot leaving the club in?
There is absolutely no question that Everton are the big losers as David Moyes makes the short trip up the M62 for good this time. For the majority of heartbroken Evertonians, it hasn’t truly sunk in yet and it’s going to take time to get over seeing Moyes at another club, especially one of your oldest rivals. Moyes represented the only crux of stability at Goodison Park and in the cold light of day, a sense of continuity is the most important thing for the board to be mindful of when considering his replacement.
One thing I can say about the search with absolute certainty is that I dislike the paper talk more for this than during the transfer window. It has been tough enough to stomach Moyes’ without looking at some of the names that are out there. The wrong or a hasty choice here could devastate the squad and send the club spiralling down the table.
It is hard to explain in detail why Everton Football Club is so unstable. You could look back to the aftermath of the Heysel Disaster, when English clubs were banned from competing in Europe. This coincided with what is considered the most successful period in the club’s history. Household names like Gary Lineker and Trevor Stevens flocked to Barcelona and Rangers, clubs who were competing in Europe.
A number of supporters’ groups cite the current board and Club Chairman, Bill Kenwright as the overarching problem. The club appears to be no closer to finding a buyer (although an EGM of the club’s shareholders which is due to be scheduled may provide for a better insight into why that is) and the average age of the squad is among the oldest in the league.
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The prized assets of that squad will surely have the spotlight shone on them this summer with bookmakers indicating that Leighton Baines and Marouane Fellaini are likely to follow David Moyes to Old Trafford. Any Everton fan will tell you that any transfer funds raised will be allocated to paying off the club’s ever rising debt first and the strengthening of the squad second.
Under Moyes’ management, relegation and Everton were seldom mentioned in the same sentence, unless of course that sentence was alluding to how unlikely it would be for Moyes’ Everton to get relegated. Fans who remember the 1990’s where Everton twice survived on the final day of the season will surely appreciate that Moyes has left the squad in a far healthier position than he inherited.
While the current group of players will likely change somewhat over the summer, the squad that Moyes’ successor will inherit is not one to be sniffed at. In particular, Distin and Jagielka look as solid as ever at the back.
Add to this the emerging talents at Goodison Park: Ross Barkley has featured somewhat over the past few weeks and looks to be coming to terms with the demands of top flight football. His promising ability makes the seemingly inevitable departure of Maraoune Fellaini slightly more bearable. Ireland’s own Shane Duffy is on the squad periphery but looks well placed to take his game to the next level in 2013/14 and finally, Kevin Mirallas appears to have gotten over the worst of his injury problems and possesses real quality.
Whoever takes the reigns at Everton will not inherit an immediate mess but the board must take a calculated approach to this search. However, the questions begs, is there a candidate out there who can step into the role in a seamless manner? I’m certainly not convinced by the current bookies’ favourites. The season will soon be in recess though and there is no rush. Perhaps I just have to come to terms with the fact there aren’t two David Moyes’ out there.
