David Moyes was once a very highly rated manager
Before taking the Manchester United job, Moyes was heralded as one of the best managers in the Premier League due to his consistent overachieving with Everton on a relatively small budget.
He took the Toffees into Europe, and was rewarded for his achievements at Goodison Park when he was appointed as Sir Alex Ferguson’s successor at Manchester United. In hindsight, it wasn’t a good appointment – the job was too big for him, and he couldn’t command the respect of the dressing room.
But it should not be forgotten what he did at Everton, and the excellent job he did at West Ham last season. He was once a very good manager.
Speaking on Sky Sports today in the build up to Everton’s clash with West Ham, he spoke in glowing terms about the team he put together during his time on Merseyside.
“I think our style back then was as good as anybody. I actually think we were probably a centre-forward away from being contenders for the Premier League,” he said.
In those days, Everton had the likes of Victor Anichebe, Yakubu, Louis Saha and Andy Johnson up front. It wasn’t until Roberto Martinez took over that Romelu Lukaku joined the club. But Moyes was full of praise for the players he coached at Everton.
“We had Mikel Arteta, we had Pienaar, we had Baines, Coleman, Distin and Jagielka. You could go on and on with the players we had. We had a terrific team, we really did,” he added.
On whether he left Everton too early, knowing how his career went after taking the United job, he said: “Look, when you get offered the Manchester United job it’s very difficult to say no to it.”
"We were a centre-forward away from competing for the Premier League." 🏆
David Moyes discusses leaving @Everton for @ManUtd and gives his thoughts on the current squad…💭
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