January 13 – Almost 12 years after departing the club, David Moyes will return to Everton and Goodison Park, taking over as manager from Sean Dyche.
On Thursday, Dyche was dismissed by The Friedkin Group (TFG) after Dyche told the club’s incoming owners he had taken the team as far as he could and a day later Everton confirmed the return of Moyes. In a statement, the Scot said: “It’s great to be back. I enjoyed 11 wonderful and successful years at Everton and didn’t hesitate when I was offered the opportunity to rejoin this great club.
“I’m excited to be working with The Friedkin Group and I am looking forward to helping them rebuild the club. Now we need Goodison and all Evertonians to play their part in getting behind the players in this important season so we can move into our fabulous new stadium as a Premier League team.”
Moyes’s immediate concern will be to lead the club to safety with Everton a point above the relegation zone in in the Premier League. Everton’s stats have been worrying: only in three seasons in their history have they scored fewer goals after 19 games and they have the Premier League’s lowest expected goals (xG) at 18.33. At the same time, the club has engineered a reputation for escaping the drop in dramatic circumstances.
It will be Moyes’s second spell in Liverpool. He previously managed Everton for more than 500 games between 2002 and 2013, guiding the club to four European campaigns and the 2009 FA Cup final.
He succeeded Sir Alex Ferguson at Old Trafford, but flopped. He has had spells at Sociedad, Sunderland and West Ham since. In London, he helped the Hammers avoid relegation in 2017-18 during a six-month spell in charge before leading them to a memorable Conference League win in his second spell.
Everton’s executive chairman Marc Watts said: “We are pleased that David is joining us at this pivotal time in Everton’s history. With over a decade of experience at the club, he is the right leader to propel us through our final season at Goodison Park and into our new stadium. We look forward to working with David to build the foundation of a new era for Everton.”
Next season, the Merseyside outfit move into their new stadium at Bramley-Moore dock. On Wednesday, they host Aston Vila at Goodison Park in the Premier League.
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