A Few Tips

David Moyes and Alan Irvine hope to bring some new training methods to Bellefield next season after spending time watching the Italians at work. Tommy Grav's agent John Sivebaek is going to get an offer he can't refuse, a horse's head in his bed.

David Moyes says:"It was good. We spent a couple of days watching the Italian players preparing for the European Championships and hopefully, we've picked up a few things that we can use back here.

"It was part of mine and Alan's further education, because we're always looking to learn new things, pick up ideas - and I wouldn't mind one or two of their players as well!"(09/06/04)

The Italian Job

Davey Moyes, and his side kick Alan Irvine, have flown out to Florence to see how Giovanni Trappotoni trains his charges, ahead of the Italians assault on Euro 2004. Moyesy is hoping to pick up on new training techniques, and he is also hoping to pick up, a few crates of white wine, and some rays whilst he is away, but don't tell the missus.

Moyesy says: "Both myself and Alan are away for a few days to see how Giovanni Trappatoni prepares his players for EURO 2004. We’re hoping to pick up some new stuff, whether it be a new training routine, seeing how he works with his players, or just sharing ideas. We’re just trying to enhance our knowledge of the game a little bit more.
It’s something that we’ve had planned for a little while. We’ve had the opportunity, and we don’t normally get this opportunity and we’ve had to take it. Hopefully, it will make us wiser in the future and with a bit of luck we might hijack one or two of their players as well!" (02/06/04)

Size Matters For Moyesy

Moyesy can't wait for the day that Everton leave Bellefield, and Dunnings Bridge Road, and set up camp in their new state of the art Training and Academy site in Halewood. Moyesy who has long fought for a modern training facility will be delighted with ten pitches, specialist goal keeping areas, and top class gymnasium areas for his first team squad, and Academy lads to use.

Moyesy on The New Academy says: "Internally, I think that Bellefield has run its course. Hopefully we'll be able to see more of the younger players at Everton, which I want to do. I want to have them around me and we can't do that at Bellefield because of the size.
I know that we'll certainly miss the surfaces that we train on every day, but hopefully we'll have as good at the new training ground - and more of them.
It's good news and it's something that I've been keen to get off the ground since I arrived at the club. I think we've been talking about it for a few years and it's good that planning permission has been granted. Hopefully now we can drive forward and move forward. It's important that we lift all the standards at Everton. A new training facility is something that we can all work towards and hopefully things will get underway in the near future." (26/05/04)

No Effort At All

Moyesy has pin pointed lack of effort by the players, as the major cause, that led to the Blues lowest top flight points total in the clubs history. Rumours of clashes with his players throughout the season, cuts no ice with the manager, as the coaching staff tried everything in their power, to stem the run of defeats.

Moyesy says: "When things are going well nothing is heard or said and when things are going badly you hear different stories. I will say though that I won't accept losing and if that means falling out and upsetting players, so be it." (21/05/04)

Staying Put

Everton boss Davey Moyes, has assured the Goodison faithful that he is going nowhere. After another poor season for the Blues it was unsure whether Moyesy has had his fill of a board that won't back his judgment with some hard cash.

Moyesy says: "Just because things get hard I am certainly not going to turn my back and not try to correct the situation we find ourselves in. Everybody understands we are in a position we shouldn't be in, nobody so more than me. I intend to do something about it, but I can only do that with help. I am willing to to go through the difficult period ahead and we are working hard to make things better. But I can only do it if I get help from the board." (19/05/04)

Read Between The Lines

In the Man City after match interview Moyesy was in one bad mood. He was up set at being associated with an Everton team, who had accumulated the lowest points since the Premiership started.

He was quick to deny that Wayne Rooney would be sold in the Summer with a single word answer of ‘No.’ When pressed again he said: "I’m sure."

In one respect he was happy that the season was over, as he could get rid of some of the dead beats he's been playing. Wonder which 9 players they are?

Moyesy says: “One positive after today is that I don’t have to pick some of the players I have been picking. I’m going to have to do something and if I’m here I’ll do what I can.”

Let's hope the board gives him the cash to strenghten the squad, or his comment "if I'm here" may mean he's had enough and will be off. (16/05/04)

Worst Points Total

Everton's awful run of form has led to the team going into tomorrow's game at Man City, knowing that defeat will leave them 4th from bottom. but also with the worst points tally in 23 years.

In those days Gordon Lee's team only got 2 points for a win.

Moyesy says: "It is hard to compare one season with another. If we had gathered the points we got last year this season, we would have qualified for Europe. It has been much of a muchness throughout this season, with anybody beating each other outside the top three. That has made the table much tighter and is why sides have been relegated with fewer points than in the past. We certainly don't want to end the season with the tag of the lowest points total for such a long time." (14/05/04)

Money Talks

He didn't want to say it but he has.

Moyesy says:"I hate to say that money means success in football, but at the level we are playing at in this day and age, it does.

"If we do not have it I will continue to try to get the best out of the players we have got.

"But as everyone can see it is no coincidence that we have lost again against Bolton, we have lost too many this season. And I intend doing something about it."

"I used to think that money wasn't everything, that you could work with players and make them better. Some people have had money and it has not been well spent.

"But I now believe that at this level of football, you do need money. Something will have to give here, I am not going to put the fans through another season like this. There is work to do here at the end of the season, and it will be done.

"Something will break I am sure. I couldn't put the fans through this again. Everton as a club has to do better.

"The fans do not deserve what they are getting here at the moment. They probably do not deserve what they have been getting for years. It is a difficult one but that's life.

"All I can say is a big thank you to them for their support, they have been terrific and it is not them who have let Everton down this year, it has been myself and the players. (10/05/04)

New Contract ?

David Moyes didn't think it was the correct time to talk about his possible new 4 year contract.

Moyesy says:"At this moment I am concentrating on our last two matches. There will be time for talking at the end of the season when we see what Everton's position is."(07/05/04)

New Signings Need To Be Here Sooner Not Later

Moyesy & Blue Bill have learned from the past that they have to act quick in the close season to bring in new players.

Apparently Moyesy has given the board his wish list and they are already working behind the scenes trying to wheel and deal.

Let's hope they do a little better than they did with their efforts for the Kings Dock.

Moyesy says: “I am hopeful the club will find the funds for us to do some work in the summer. I know what Bill Kenwright is like, he is working really hard behind the scenes to make things happen. He has taken a lot of the responsibility for what goes on and he deserves a great deal of credit for that. I don’t want it to be the same situation as last year where new players came in four weeks after the season had started. Ideally, I want players in place before we start back for pre-season training or, if not, I want them coming in during that period."

He added: "We didn’t have much consistency about us until around Christmas time this season and I don’t know how much of that is down to players coming in late and needing to settle. We were up in the air for the first few months of the season. Myself and Bill have certainly learned from waiting for Sean Davis all last summer, although it was not our fault he suffered ligament damage and failed the medical.” (05/05/04)

Embarrassment

David Moyes is still coming to terms with the position his team is in.

Moyesy says: "I’m still trying to get over the embarrassment of the position we’re in just now. We will try and move forward but we’ve still got two games to play yet. I want to try and win them, I think the least we can do is to try and finish on a high and I’ll be preparing the players to try and make that happen starting on Saturday.”(04/05/04)

We Need Goals

David Moyes reckons the main reason for having such a poor season is not having one of his strikers in double figures.

Moyesy says: "None of our strikers have got into double figures this season and that is a problem in itself. That is probably one of the reasons why we are at the wrong end of the table. But it is down to everybody. We want them to keep getting in there to take the chances.(02/05/04)

Two Good Performances

Who could forget the shite we served up in our 2-1 defeat at Blackburn and the 2-0 defeat at Bolton? Well it appears Moyesy hasn't forgot either and wants to put in 2 good performances in our last 2 home games of the season to make amends

Moyesy says: "Two of our worst performances have been against Blackburn and Bolton and we are determined to do much better than we did in those away games when we face those sides at Goodison. We need to keep continuing the kind of form we have been showing. I've been pleased with the more consistent performances and we are looking to win against Blackburn on Saturday although they have played well against us in our last three meetings. We have had a strange season, but we are doing well now. It would be nice for it continue a bit longer but when the end comes, it comes. We have just got to do the job in the next four games. We are facing sides that are still in need of points, although things could be over and done with by the time we face some of the teams. We see them as all winnable games and there is still an opportunity for us to climb up quite a few places." (23/04/04)

A Few New Faces Would Do

David Moyes accepts he will not get a blank cheque book, but at least a few new additions to his squad in the summer would be nice.

Moyesy says: "I don't want to go through another season like this. The board here have always been supportive to any manager. They have always tried to do the best they can for them, and I am sure they will continue to try and do so. I think we'll need to keep getting the best out of the players we've got. Cheque-book managers aren't readily available and if you are one then you are very lucky to be at a club who has that - we don't.

"We need to keep working with the players we've got but we do need a new group of players, whether that be two, three or four. Finances are hard but I'll be doing everything I can in suggesting what players we should bring in, and hopefully we'll try and do it."(19/04/04)

Looking Ahead

Although not mathematically safe, Davey Moyes feels we have done enough to avoid the drop to the Nationwide. After saying that he is the first to point out, that it just isn't good enough, and changes to personnel will have to be made in the Summer.

Moyesy says: "First and foremost, I want to get the points that make sure that we are a Premiership club for another season. I'm sure we will be. We've got players here who are certainly good enough for that, but I do think that we need to try and make some changes in the summer if we can. The finances are really tight, so it will be a sort of tight season for us, working with the budget we've got, but I'm determined to move things on. I don't want to be standing on the touchline going through some of the performances we've produced this season. I'm determined that won't happen again.
I'd be lying if I said this season hasn't been a grind at times. I will be delighted when we're mathematically safe. I think the result against Spurs goes a long way in doing that, but I think Everton should be better than that. I don't think we should be a side who are struggling year in, year out. And I know, with the exception of last year, that has probably been the case in recent times. But I think we need to try and turn that around. So, what do you do. Do you keep it going and put up with things as they are? I don't want to put up with things as they are. I want to be managing an Everton side who are at the top end of the league." (11/04/04)

Your All Shite !!!

Moyesy is not going to dwell to much on the terrible defensive performance, that cost us four goals at Newcastle. He has told the players what he thinks of them, but apparently 'Sandro lost it in the changies, when Moyesy told him he was not as good looking as he thought he was.

Moyesy says : "We’ve lost today after going five games unbeaten and we’re looking forward to the games over Easter. We did a lot of good things today and we need to take the positives and get some results. I won’t dwell on the negatives. The players know what they are because I’ve told them. These players are better than the league position would indicate but you need to prove it on the field." (05/04/04)

Trap Door Still Open

Although Everton are six points off the drop zone, Moyesy still believes that the trap door could still open on us. With four of Everton's last nine matches coming against lower opposition, there is a remote possibility that we could still be sucked in to the dog fight.

Moyesy says: "I would like to think that we are not in a relegation fight but I can't bury my head in the sand and say we are completely safe. If we get another win then we can make sure that we stay well away from the bottom and start to try and eat into the teams in the middle of the league. But I keep saying that it is easy for me to say that, it's doing it on the field that is more important and that's what matters. So we will be doing everything we can to make sure that happens. We need to win as many games as we can to climb up the table and I am still hopeful we can finish in a much healthier position than we are at the moment." (27/03/04)

Concentration

David Moyes believes a lack of concentration has cost us points .

Moyesy says: "It is something we have to make sure doesn't happen again. Had it not been for late goals we would have had 12 points from our last four matches. It is just a case of concentrating that little bit harder and being a bit more professional in the last 10 minutes of matches. We have to make sure we see games out. Concentration is not something you can work on in training. All we can do is talk to the players about it because we don't want it to happen again. (25/03/04)

Tributes

David Moyes has led the tributes to lifelong Everton fan Bernard Murphy, who tragically lost his life, before Everton's game on Saturday, in a freak accident. Everton as a mark of respect will hold a minutes silence ahead of the Blues clash with Boro' this weekend.

Moyesy says: "I would like to offer my sincere condolences to the family of the supporter. We always thank everybody who watches Everton, both home and away, because they are so passionate and loyal, and for this tragedy to happen to someone who is just trying to get to see his team play is devastating. It’s difficult to find the right words at a time like this but my thoughts, first and foremost, are with the family and we, as a football club, will do everything we can to help them through this awful time.

Head of PR Ian Ross says: I’ve spoken to Bernard Murphy’s family this morning and passed on the sympathy and condolences of everybody at Everton Football Club. We discussed a number of things and they have agreed to a minute’s silence before the Middlesbrough match on Saturday, which I’m sure will be respected by both home and away supporters. We have told the family that if there is absolutely anything we can do, we will do it. Most people acknowledge that football clubs regard themselves as an extended family and this loss has been felt by everyone connected with Everton - players, staff and supporters alike. We can’t do much for the family at this time but anything we can help them with, we’ll certainly do so. We’ve had messages from people from all over the world, primarily Evertonians, and we’ve had e-mails from Leicester City fans expressing their sympathy. In the last hour we have received a fax from the President of Barcelona FC expressing sympathy and sorrow on behalf of their club. It’s very touching and it under-scores the belief that football is a huge family, it’s a family game and these tragedies do not go un-noticed around Europe." (22/03/04)

Tough Task

Moyesy believes that this is not the best of times to be facing Leicester this weekend. It will be the Midlanders first home match, since their disastrous La Manga trip, and the alleged sexual shenanigans that took place there.

Moyesy says: "I think it’s a particularly difficult time to play Leicester. Everybody is well aware of the situation there. They will be treating it like everybody is against them and they will be making sure that they all stick together and are looking after one another. It showed in their result against Birmingham on Saturday. We know it will be hard. It’s their first time at home since the incident, so it will be a rousing game when we go there, I’m sure. They’re a strong side, and I wouldn’t say they were direct, but they’re a strong, physical side who compete for everything. You have to do that because they’re fighting for their lives in the Premiership, so I suppose that they are not dissimilar to us. All year they’ve been hard to play against, they’ve had some wonderful results and some poor results. We need to go about our business but obviously we need to make sure that we’re aware of what Leicester’s strengths are and deal with them the best we can." (19/03/04)

Let's Calm It

Moyesy celebrated his second anniversary in charge of the Toffee men, with a much needed three points against Pompey at the weekend. It was scary stuff at times, with the back four looking like the cast of a Marx Brothers film, rather than Premiership defenders.

Moyesy says: "In the last two games, our back four has kept two clean sheets, so that's good, but we made silly defensive mistakes against Portsmouth. There were two short pass backs in the first half, there were a couple of mix-ups, and players were slicing the ball when they should have been calmer. You work all week on the defensive aspects of the game and you hope that when they go out on a Saturday, they will be okay. But they should know that they shouldn’t be taking chances on the edge of the box, especially because of the situation we’re in at the moment. There’s no need for them to do that and hopefully it won’t happen again."

Moyesy on The Tension at Goodison: "There’s been a lot of tension at Goodison for years. I think that last year was the only year for a long time when there hasn’t been tension, so I’m sure everyone’s used to it here. It wasn’t a great game of football, but there’s been a lot of games of football here like this before and there will be a lot in the future, because it’s tense. Teams are trying to win all their games. Saturday’s game was very important for both teams, but we won and that’s a great feeling. If you’re in this position, whatever we achieved against Portsmouth would never have been enough to give us breathing space, so all we can do is move on to the next game and pick up another three points." (16/03/04)

Team Spirit

David Moyes is insisting that team spirit is the ingredient that will keep us going right to the of the season.

David says: "Inside them there is a heartbeat, a spirit amongst the players that is strong enough to make sure we get the points which are required.We are the first to accept we are not gifted with the most talented squad in the Premiership but what we have been gifted with is players with great attitude."

"If you get a momentum going that is so, so important. We got some momentum from as soon as I took over and we kept it going into last season. But we lost that a wee bit in our pre-season and it is something we took into the start of the season. There's lots of things we will look back on at the end of the season. But I am aiming to win every one of those remaining 11 games and get more points than we did last season. It is still possible. At the end of the season we will see what the difference is."(13/03/04)

Moyesy Slams Ref

Davey Moyes has slammed the amateurish refereeing, that led to Davey Weir's dismissal for the rezzies last night at Blackburn. Weir who will now miss Premiership matches against Newcastle, Boro and Spurs, is set to appeal against the ref's decision.

Moyesy says: "I think it was a ludicrous decision. It was disappointing that it happened but I think everybody will see that it was a really poor decision for the referee. I was going to be disappointed when I thought the referee was calling him over maybe to book him, and I couldn’t believe it when he gave him the red card. But that’s what you get, the refereeing standards in the reserve games are poor." (11/03/04)

Important Game or What

Moysey like all Toffee People would like 3 points on Saturday to make the gap between us and Portsmouth a healthy one.

Moysey says: "The next game is vital because we know we can get some daylight between ourselves and Portsmouth and if we don't we know we will be scrapping until the end. It is a big game for us to try and get points from.

"We have had a break and although it is one we would rather not have had because we wanted to be in the cup, it could also prove beneficial. It would have made it hard as a manager to give players time off if we had lost against Villa. That result helped us and made it easier to give the players a break."(09/03/04)

Challenge Moyesy

Everton's barren run of late, is also Moyesy's biggest challenge of his short managerial career. Moyesy is quick to point out, that the players at his disposal are the same bunch that got the Blues to the edge of European qualification, last season.

Moyesy says: "It is something which I am treating as a challenge for me. As a manager everything is not fine all the time. This is the first time I have been in a position like this other than when I first took over at both Preston and here. This is a test that I am going to stand up to. Other than Nigel Martyn and Kevin Kilbane, who have come in and performed really well this season, it is the same group of players who finished seventh last season. We know what we are capable of and we are all in it together. We will continue to do everything we can to win the next game."(24/02/04)

Extra Work

Moyesy has singled out the back four for extra training over the last week. After leaking goals at an alarming rate in our last three games, Moyesy has been putting Unsey, Stubbsy and co., through their paces, in an attempt to get back to the form that seen us keep five clean sheets in six matches, earlier in the season. Moyesy did refute claims though, that he was juggling with the idea of wedging Rick Waller in the sticks, for this weekend's visit of Aston Villa.

Moyesy says: "It’s terrible conceding 10 goals in three games but what can you do? We just have to keep trying to stop them. We will keep working, we’ve had a week were all we’ve done is work on our back four. Work on the defenders all week, nothing else. You could say for example we’ve done very well until the penalty kick to make it 3-2. You could say for the third goal did the boy not score a very good goal to make it three? So in a lot of ways you could say that it is hard to criticise your defenders, but we’ve still come away losing three goals and that is not acceptable."(24/02/04)

Moans and Groans

Moyesy has admitted that his missus gets it in the neck a bit, as the team has not been doing to brilliant of late. His missus has to put up with his moans and groans, and this season, for her it must be living like Alf Garnett, as to put it mildly we have been poo. Moyesy though has promised to treat his other half, and with Summer on the way, Mrs Moyesy is already looking forward to packing her bags for their two weeks in a de luxe 32 footer caravan, just out side Talacre, you know the site, by the big castle. Mrs Moyesy was heard to say it's lovely there if you can get the weather.

Moyesy says: "I don’t like losing or being at the bottom. It is affecting me. I’d much rather be cheerier. I’ve got good staff and speak to them regularly about it. They hear my moans and my missus gets it a bit as well. I have to treat this as a test of myself and see how I handle it. I will never accept losing or not doing well. When things are going well, it’s a great game and much easier. But I realise I am really fortunate to be a manager, especially at a big club. Thousands out there would love to be in my position." (21/02/04)

No Need For A Shrink

Moyesy is not about to call ex England guru, Eileen Drewery to Goodison, as he thinks his players are just playing shite, rather than having a mental block. He thinks our performances are OK, but goal returns, and especially our away points return, are not up to scratch.

Moyesy says: "Away from home things have not gone well. But it has not been all bad performances. We should have got something at Fulham and we have gone to Liverpool and earned a draw. We are out of our tough period of fixtures now and we are now facing games where we have an equal chance of winning. It is always tough down at Southampton but it is tough in any game away from home for Everton this season. We had a great record last year, we played well and won the games. This year we have found it much more difficult. It is hard to put your finger on the reason why but I don't think it is psychological." (20/02/04)

All Of Us

David Moyes as honest as ever has stressed the importance of all of us sticking together through this rough patch.

Moyesy said "It is not just for the players to respond, it's for me as well. I certainly won't shy away from my responsibilities. It's not a case of 'them' and 'us', it is 'we' and I am as much part of them as they are part of me. There is certainly no blame being attached to any one person here, it is for all of us to accept the responsibility and for all of us to make sure we do something about the position we are in at the moment." (15/02/04)

Nonsense

David Moyes has described the International Football Association Board’s decision to change the offside rule as nonsense and he hopes the PFA will take action sooner rather than later.

Moyesy said: “I think it’s rubbish, I really do and I think the PFA should stand up and say something about. I think all managers and coaches are distraught by the thought of it and we feel that with all our years in the game, we’ve developed an understanding of the rules. But at this moment in time, we’re all completely unaware of when a linesman will give offside or when he won’t. I think we’re all disappointed and quite upset that a change has occurred in the middle of a season, causing our referees and their assistants to be ignorant of the rules themselves. It’s nonsense.” (15/02/04)

Back To Basics

Moyesy is urging his players to get back to basics to avoid a relegation dog fight towards the end of the season. With the players on an enforced break, due to the FA Cup this weekend, Moyesy has a full week to teach them to move and pass to each other. He has called in Marvo The Magician to give him a hand this week.

Moyesy says: "We would like to get the next game round, but I think we have got a bit of work to do before we go there. We need to work on our play and the overall shape of the team. It's a fundamental fault. We are not defending well, and we are not scoring the goals when we get the opportunities. It was an important game for us in midweek. We need to put that behind us and get ready for the next one now."(14/02/04)

From The Off Lads

Moyesy's patience is wearing a bit thin, as he says that his players are performing better, when they start on the bench, than if they start them from the off. In recent weeks, we have seen last minute goals from Franny Jeffers coming off the bench, and The Duke put in a stirring second half performance after coming on as a sub. Both players though have been under par, when starting from the off, and Moyesy want's all this to change.

Moyesy says: "Whoever we pick to start up front, the players who come off the bench seem to do better. Francis Jeffers came on and made the difference at Fulham last week but when we gave him a start at the weekend he didn't have the same impact. Wayne Rooney's performances have been improving recently but the better ones have been as a substitute. We need the forwards to take responsibility from the very first minute and not just when they come off the bench. Wayne has made an impact when he has come on but so has Franny. Wayne needs goals to go along with the good performances. Saturday was exactly the sort of performance we are looking for from him. That was his best 45 minutes of football this season." (11/02/04)

Jekyll and Hyde

Moyesy is hoping that his team reproduce their second half performance from the weekend's defeat against United, against Brum on Wednesday. That's all well and good Davey, but let's also tell them not to reproduce their first half performance, as that was the ultimate horror show.

Moyesy says: "I'll only be able to tell if the second half performance against United helped us when we get to Birmingham and see if they produce the sort of form they have been. If they do what they have been in the last month or two then we won't be complaining. If they produce what they gave us in the first half then we will be. I was looking at the clock with three or four minutes to go thinking the quicker the end comes the better, and that was proved by them getting a goal in the last minute. I thought that if anybody was going to get a winner it was probably us, but Manchester United have had two or three breaks and we had defended better in that period. I think they were very good in the first half, but I think it was a big, big part down to the way that we defended. When you do that and give Manchester United opportunities then they'll certainly take them."(09/02/04)

Fingers Out Boys

Moyesy pulled no punches, when he told the squad, and his forwards in particular that it just isn't good enough. A sterner test could not be afforded to the Blues, with a visit of Champions United at Goodison today, and as I have said many times before, the talking has got to stop, and the points must start to come, or a tricky last few months lie ahead of us. With only three wins in our last thirteen matches, the omens certainly don't look good.

Moyesy says: "We haven’t had many highs this season by the standards I want us to set. Hopefully with the games to come we’ll achieve that. I still want us to get more points than we did last season, that’s still possible. But to do that, we still have to win the majority of our matches. The amount of games that we win between now and the end of the season will be crucial to see where we can finish up There’s no reason why we shouldn’t finish higher than we did last season. At the start of the season, our target was to win the Premiership, the FA Cup and the League Cup. Obviously, that looks as if it’s out of the window, so we’ll try and do the best we can and gain as many points as possible. It’s not just down to bad luck, it’s down to bad finishing as well. It’s not just been in isolated games, there’s been a lot of times when we’ve struggled to score. We’ve tried all the scenarios, different partnerships, extra finishing practice, no finishing practice, and crossing. You name it, we’ve done everything to try and find the answer. But there isn’t an answer, there’s just a responsibility to put the ball over the line. We keep telling them that. If they keep making the chances and they don’t score, at least we know where the fault lies, but they must keep making the chances. They tell me that we’ve not got a very good record against Manchester United. We’ll have to be on the top of our game to get a result against them at any time and we’ll do everything we can to beat them. It will be a very hard game for us. They have players who would play for most teams in Europe, if not the world. They’re full of international players who are used to winning. They have players who compete, a real desire and a drive to continue doing that season after season, that’s why at this present time, they’re the best." (07/02/04)

Simply The Best, Fans That Is

Everton gaffer Davey Moyes is gutted for all those travelling fans who made the 250 mile journey, to see last night's cup defeat at Loftus Road. He, like everyone else feels that with West Ham at home in the next round, a quarter final place could and should have been ours.

Moyesy says:" I'm disappointed for the fans that I couldn't give them a victory to take back with them because it would have been a reward for them travelling and coming down tonight. The support we had was tremendous. I'm just a wee bit disappointed that we couldn't send them back up the road with a victory because it was a good cup draw to get in the next round and I think we were all looking forward to trying to get through and facing West Ham at home. I'll try and win as many league games as we can from now until the end of the season." (05/02/04)

Do Him Davey

Moyesy has found himself in a war of words with shite manager Inspector Closeau, over some of the decisions not awarded to Everton in Saturdays goalless derby at Analfield. Moyesy was incensed at Hyypia not getting his marching orders when he hauled down The Rad as he was clean through on goal, and also the blatant hand ball that even David Blunkett would have seen. The French Fool predictably did not see either of the incidents, so there's a fuckin' suprise.

Moyesy says: "I do not like seeing players sent off, but certainly Hyypia should have got a red card. Radzinski was through and Hyypia was the last man. It may have looked accidental to some, but I have seen the replay and Hyypia definitely has a look at our player before it happened. I have not discussed it with the referee Steve Bennett. Keith Hackett, the FA's new boss of the referees, was here and maybe it would be better if he had a word rather than another manager having a go. As for the penalty, I have seen that too and it looked like hands. If you are going to win at Anfield you have to have the decisions going for you, and they did not with those two incidents." (02/02/04)

Inspector Closeau says : "I do not see either instances the way David did." (02/02/04)

No Problems

David Moyes concedes that in his time as manager, we are probably entering his most difficult period of games, since he took charge. With a shit load of away games, and the easy task of trying to over turn the Mancs at home, this really is a make or break time of the season for the Blues.

Moyesy says: "I think this period is probably the toughest period since I’ve been Everton manager as far as the games are concerned. I think we’ve got four of the next five games away from home and the one game we do have at home is against Manchester United. I can’t see how it gets any tougher than that. I don’t think there’s anything up with the way we’re playing. I think that there have been games where we’ve played far worse last season yet picked up more points than we have at present. Hopefully we’re due a little bit of luck and I think that is needed. I don’t like using that word because I think you make your own luck, but I do feel that we’re in need of one coming off someone’s backside and dropping in, or just the ball falling kindly for us. Maybe in recent weeks that hasn’t quite happened." (29/01/04)

What a Club

Moyesy has congratulated Blue Bill's gesture of paying for the travelling fan's to next week's Cup Replay. Bluekipper.com have put in request for a hire of a Stretch Limo to the Smoke and back, but since handing our invoice in to Mr. Kenwright's office, he has threatened to ring the police if we don't leave him alone.

Moyesy says: "It’s a terrific football club. The way the club look after their ex-players and all the people who are connected with it is great. Things like Bill Kenwright sending the supporters down is just another gesture and another sign that Everton is a big family who is hoping to get back to the days of glory which hopefully aren’t too far away. Anybody who’s been involved with Everton as a player, a manager, a supporter will tell you that that’s why it is so special a football club. That’s why once it gets its claws into you; you’re there. There are many great players who’ve played for other clubs but they always talk about Everton very fondly." (28/01/04)

Let's Do The Shit Heads

Moyesy is hoping to break his derby jinx this weekend against the shit heads. In three attempts Moyesy only has one draw to show for his efforts, so here's hoping his hodoo is broken this Saturday.

Moyesy says: "I’ve not enjoyed the derbies because we’ve not won. I would like to win at Goodison or at Anfield, wherever we play them, as long as we win. It’s an important game because we need the points but I’m sure for many reasons Liverpool think the same. We went to Anfield last season and drew and I thought we did quite well in that game. I think the games we have played them, the games have been tighter than maybe the results show, but results in the derbies is what you’re after, it’s not really the performance, it’s getting the points or getting the win because it’s important for lots of other reasons as well." (28/01/04)

Start Scoring Lads

Moyesy is laying down the gauntlet to his front men, as with five strikers on the books, goals are becoming as rare as a slim bird in the Grafton. Moyesy used his eleventh different pairing in Saturday's defeat, and Graeme Sharp still employed by the club, has been asked to lay off the ale and to step up his training.

Moyesy says : "I will pick whoever starts to score the goals regularly. But lately the goals haven't been coming. The chances we got on Saturday were not simple tap-ins but we enjoyed lots of play and produced some great crosses." (19/01/04)

Moyesy's Going For It

Moyesy may start with three main strikers today, to make up for his lack of talent in the middle of the park, as half of his midfield are laid low with injuries. The three-pronged strike force worked a treat against the Gooners, and with the home crowd hopefully right behind the lads, Moyesy’s up and at ‘em tactics may be deployed again.

Moyesy says: “We have been short of midfield players, and so that has been the way to go for those games. We won’t be using all strikers all the time, but in the main it has worked quite well in the last couple of games. That is not to say though, we will be doing that again.” (17/01/04)

Pick of The Bunch

With the exception of Nick Chadwick, Moyesy has a full quota of forwards to pick from for this weekend's clash against high flying Charlton. Franny Jeffers who started last week's defeat against Fulham is definetely in Moyesy's thoughts, but the lure of bringing Big Dunc back in may be too great.

Moyesy says : "He’s not had too many games, which is unfortunate for him ( Jeffers). But he’s up against big competition. We’ve got a situation where all our strikers, with the exception of Nick Chadwick, are fit. We’re able to change them around a little bit and we did that last week after the games against Norwich and Arsenal. I thought we had the legs to do that. We’ll have a look at it and we’ll see what we think on Saturday. I’d rather have it this way, than the situation that we had at the end of last season when we only had two fit strikers to pick from with ten games to go." (15/01/04)

Davis, Who Needs Him

David Moyes has no regrets on missing out on his long time transfer target, Fulham's Sean Davis. The Fulham midfielder was on the verge of signing for the Blues back in the Summer, but the transfer broke down when Everton pulled out of the deal, due to Davis knee problem. Unconfirmed reports from Goodison also suggested that Davis reeked of cheese and garlic permanently, and some of the players were unhappy with having to put up with such an aroma, after having just said goodbye to Mark Pembridge.

Moyesy says: "Everybody knows Sean Davis was my main target but that didn't happen. Instead, we brought in Nigel Martyn, Kevin Kilbane and Faddy, who is full of potential and a big part of the future, as well as signing Francis Jeffers on a season long loan. We tried to work very hard to improve the squad when we didn't get Sean and I think it was noticeable those players had a big part to play in the quality of our performance on Saturday. I think the four have all played an important part for us so far this season. The only disappointing thing is that, because of the way things happened, we got them a month later than we would have liked. Had we got them before the season they would have been reaching the standards they are setting now earlier." (13/01/04)

The Cupboard Is Bare

January is going to come and go, without any new faces being added to Moyesy's squad. We are officially skint, but at least we are being honest about it. Anyway the bucket scheme outside the ground on match days, has now raised £834.22p, so hopefully by the Summer we may see a new face or two. Fuckin' hell cheer up, you could be a Leeds supporter.

Moyesy says: "There won't be any transfers. If you haven't got the money then you have to be big enough to come out and say that. Why mislead people? We are continually looking to bring in players who can improve the squad and we will do that when finances are made available. Signing players isn't always the answer though. Sometimes players within your own squad need to be given an opportunity." (12/01/04)

Moyesy On The Spot

Whilst in London for Saturday's defeat at Fulham, Moyesy was invited onto Sky TV's Sunday Morning footy round up show. Those of you who cannot afford the inflated prices that Sky charge nowadays, will have missed Moyesy in an upbeat mood, despite the weekend's defeat. He was put on the spot by hosts Rob Mc Caffrey, and footballing legend Chris Kamara, and asked a string of questions about Everton, Wayne Rooney, Nige Martyn for England, Club discipline and most importantly what went wrong with Beagle 2 whilst landing on Mars. Below are some of the questions and answers :

On the season so far: " I don't think it's been a good season. Our players are better than they are showing and we should be doing better. Maybe some of the new players are taking a little bit of time to bed in."

On expectations of Everton: " Our players did brilliantly last season. You've got to remember that Everton haven't been in the top half of the table for years, so there's no reason to think we would be there again."

On Nigel Martyn: " He has brought in a calmness. In the Premier League, as far as English goalkeepers are getting on, I don't think are any doing better than Nigel."

On his strike-force: " With 10 games to go last season we were in a Champions League spot. Then Brian McBride went back to America and Tomasz Radzinski got injured, which left us with only Wayne Rooney and Kevin Campbell up front, and in the end we didn't have enough and lost out on that UEFA Cup spot. I didn't want that to happen again. So I brought in Francis Jeffers and Duncan Ferguson is fit again."

On Everton: " No player or manager is bigger than any football club. Once I've gone and Wayne's gone, Everton football club will still be there."

On Wayne Rooney: " You've got to remember that Wayne was a substitute for most of last year, so you've got to give the rest of the team some credit. This season, he started the opening 13 games and only scored one goal. Since we made him a substitute he has scored three or four. This is part of his development. He had a bit of a lull at the start of the season but now he is right back on form."

On Rooney's discipline: " At the start of the season he was angry with referees but you've not seen that in eight or ten weeks. We have worked on that but no one wants to say his discipline has improved."

On James McFadden: " He had an amazing start because he'd just broken into the Scottish squad and he's a big star up there. He's a little bit in and out of the team, but we've been really pleased with him. With us having him and Wayne Rooney I think we've got two of the best young players around."

On what it takes to be a manager: "You need to be given a chance to build a team but no manager can expect time now."

On whether he enjoys management: " Sometimes... when your 3-0 up! I think I enjoy it but there's so much going though your mind." (12/01/04)

TV Superstar

Everton boss Davey Moyes will be sat on Sky TV's couch this Sunday morning, on their popular Goal's on Sunday show. The programme goes out on Sky Sport's One at 11:30 am, but anyone who misses it, sleeping off their Saturday night hangover, don't worry. The programme will be repeated over 36 times in the coming week, as is Sky's policy with their sport's programmes. (09/01/04)

Special Atmosphere

Moyesy paid tribute to the 38,000 or so fans last night who braved appalling weather conditions, to make Goodison a very hostile enviroment indeed for the visiting Gooners. That was the noisiest Goodison has been for many a year, and even were we sat in the executive suite, we all managed to clink our glasses as the crowd sung away. More caviar anyone !

Moyesy says: "I think tonight that our supporters played a big part in roaring the team on. They kept right behind us. I think they saw the boys were doing everything they could to get a result." (08/01/04)

Lightening To Strike Twice

Everton boss Davey Moyes, is talking up the chances of his troops before his sends them into battle against the unbeaten Gooners. After ending Arsenal's winning streak last season, Moyesy believes his players are in the right frame of mind to do it again, and maybe this time lighting may just strike twice.

Moyesy says : "This is a huge game, with us having great memories of last season when we beat them. Overall it was such a good performance that it pushed Everton's name into the front again. We went on from there to get some good victories and stay in the top half of the table all season. But all round it is a tough game. And at the moment with the form Arsenal are in, it does not come much tougher. For Arsenal to still be unbeaten in the league at this stage is a fantastic achievement. They came here last season in the same position, and it would be nice for lightning to strike twice and for us to end their unbeaten run again. I saw them on TV against Southampton and they were awesome, and I went to Leeds on Sunday and some of the things they do astonish you. The players are keen to show what they can do. They did it last season and we know we are going to need a lot of good fortune and a lot of real hard, honest working performances coupled with technique and the ability to take any chance that comes, because against Arsenal you do not get many. But all round it is a tough game. And at the moment with the form Arsenal are in, it does not come much tougher." (07/01/04)

Terrific

The Manager of The People's Club was a happy bunny after a terrific 1st half performance, which enabled The Toffees to progress 3-1 past Norwich to the 4th round of the FA Cup draw on Monday.

Moyesy says: “I thought we were terrific in the first half, that was probably as well as we’ve played all season. We were very attack-minded. We created chances, had shots and only to go in at half-time 2-1 up was a travesty. If we would have gone in 4-0 up, I don't think many people would have argued. But the second half got much tougher and Norwich played very well. We lost Tommy Gravesen at half time and he’d played very well up until then. So, we did miss him. I thought that we didn’t start the second half well and they put their foot down and were unlucky not to get another goal, so a lot of credit has to go to Norwich. The result does two things – it gets us into the Fourth Round of the FA Cup and it also banishes the memories of last season’s defeat to Shrewsbury. Hopefully, we’ve started in the year in the way we mean to carry on.” (03/01/04)

No New Faces

Due to the financial situation at Goodison, Moyesy is not anticipating any new faces joining the Squad, whilst the transfer window is open. Rumours sweeping through Everton though seem to think that The Blues currently have their eye on somebody, as the club has been linked with a new cleaner to take over the hospitality suites, Everton when asked told us to go away, and leave them alone.

Moyesy says: "There hasn't been any movement and we are not anticipating any here. We have a strong squad a big squad of players and we will be using them from now until the end of the season. We have always tried to move things on and keep progressing the club. We got in three or four players last August and they have taken a bit of time to settle. At present the finances here are tight and we will have to work with the players we have got and try to get the best out of them." (03/01/04)

Let's Be Careful Out There

Moyesy is hoping that his team do not suffer another third round humiliation, like we suffered last season at the hands of Kevin Ratcliffe's Shrewsbury. Saying that Moyesy believes his squad is in better shape than last season, but still realises the danger that high flying Norwich will pose.

Moyesy says : "Clearly Norwich are a better team than Shrewsbury and we will have to learn the lessons from last season's experience because, if we learned anything from that experience, it was that Cup upsets can and do happen. But the Norwich players will be keen to show their boss that if they do go up, and they are in pole position at present, that they are good enough to play against Premiership teams. As a result we know it will be a fiercely contested tie." (03/01/04)

No Departures

Moyesy has confirmed that no contact from any club has been made for any of his playing staff. It is a nervy time for club's like Everton, with the transfer window about to open, and the big hitters waving their cheque books about. Hopefully our board will be true to their word, and that means no one is going anywhere.

Moyesy says : "We have received no contact from any club for any of our players nor will we be encouraging any." (30/12/03)

Busy Times

Whilst other countries enjoy an extended Christmas break, this historically has always been our league's busiest period, and Moyesy thinks it is very unfair on the players. Unfair on the players I've got to go on a bender Boxing Day, start again against Brum on the Sunday, and in the middle of that attend a 70's doo at me mates, and I still have not sorted a friggin' costume out. Any suggestions.

Moyesy says: "I don't think it's particularly fair to ask players to perform on a Friday and a Sunday. But it's been part of the culture in British football for years and years so we all know about it and in days gone past sometimes you had to play two games in two days. I don't think we awfully enjoy football at this time because we would all like to spend some time with our families. But that's the way it works, so we have to take the games and get on with it. This time of year is one of the reasons we have big squads, as you need them throughout a season but they justify themselves over Christmas and Easter. They are periods that can make such a difference to your season. It would be very nice to go into the New Year in the top half of the table if we can. That is what we are aiming for." (24/12/03)

Movin' On Up

Moyesy like us all, was obviously delighted at the lads first back to back wins of the season, and the gaffer thinks we are heading in the right direction. With the league tighter than ever this season, it is imperative that we keep our run of good form going over Christmas, even at Old Trafford against the Champions. You never know, as they say its a funny old game.

Moyesy says : "That was a big win. Any win in the Premier League is a big win but you know that was an important one. We need to get the points to get to safety as soon as we can but we are still a long way from being out of the woods, but I do feel we are going in the right direction now. I know we didn't beat Manchester City and we went to Middlesborough and got a draw up there, but the last three or four results suggest we are getting stronger and we are going in the right direction. Things change very quickly in football. We are only five or six points off a Champions League place but equally we are only four points clear of the drop zone, so it is all very tight at the moment and we need to pick up points over the Christmas period in order to build on the last two wins. I think we are capable of being in a better position in the league than we are at present and the aim now is to try and win the next game and that happens to be the one against Manchester United." (23/12/03)

Back To Back

If Everton beat Leicester on Saturday, they should be well on the way to starting the New Year in the top ten, and in the process achieve back to back wins for the first time this season in the league. Moyesy also has had a boost with players returning from injury at this very crucial stage of the season, especially in the defensive department.

Moyesy says: "Tony Hibbert’s improving and he’s got a good chance of being available for Saturday and Joseph Yobo has been training with us everyday, he’s not missed a day’s training since the day after the Bolton game. But he’s still feeling a problem when he’s been heading the ball. The problem should have, by now, gone away, so he should be back within the next day or so. We just need to try and concentrate fully on beating Leicester City and if we do that then we will achieve back to back wins. At the moment, it’s a big job, it’s a difficult game and we’ll have to be at our best to get a result." (19/12/03)

Home Sweet Home

As like before the Wolves game Moyesy is asking the Goodison faithful to get right behind the lads on Sunday, as it is sure to give them a lift. With Everton traveling aswell as Mark Thatcher, it is at Goodison that the vast majority of points have been gained, and Moyesy wants to make sure that Sunday is no different

Moyesy says: "Some of our home performances have been excellent, we get roared on by the crowd and everyone is behind us. It is away from home that we struggle. It is hard to see why we play well at home and not away. We do nothing differently, but we do need an away success to give us some self belief.'' (05/12/03)

I Won't Quit

The Manager of The People's Club has spoken out against some shite, which has been written in the papers & certain web sites.

Moyesy says: "This is a challenge. It is a situation I am not used to and I hope I never get used to it either. It is a test for me and I'm looking forward to dealing with it. In football you will always get periods when things aren't going as well as they should, and every manager can tell you that. But there is no chance of me getting fed up with things and walking out. The situation will change, I have no doubt about that. This is a group of players, now boasting the additions of James McFadden, Kevin Kilbane, Francis Jeffers and Nigel Martyn, who for most of last season were between fourth and sixth and only dropped out of that on the final day. We were still in contention for a Champions League place at Easter, when we played Liverpool and then Chelsea in three days. If those results had gone the other way who knows what might have happened?" There is no way I'd consider leaving. I came to Everton to win something and I want to win something with Everton. That has not changed at all." (03/12/03)

Local Knobhead Talks (But No One Listens)

Some local turd who is clinging to his own job by the skin of his French testicles has come out into the media and stuck his oar in, when no fucker asked him to regarding Davey Moyes. Maybe to take the heat of his own shortcomings, he is telling us to lay off Moyesy, when I actually thought no Evertonians were laying in to the boss of the Blues. Anyway you have enough problems of your own, mainly with your fuckin' eye sight so butt out and mind your own twattin' business you French helmet.

Some French Bellend says: "I feel a lot of sympathy for David Moyes. At the moment he is getting unfair criticism.This seems to happen now in football. First this season it was Bobby Robson, then it was me. Now it is David.All I know is where there is stability at a football club, there is success. We now live in an era of the quick fix not just in football but in life.You are a hero one moment and then a zero the next.I just wanted to take this opportunity to give him my support as a friend. People should give him time to do his job." (03/12/03)

You Tell 'em Dave

Moyesy is trying to play down the fuss surrounding his substitution of Wayne Rooney at Saturday's embarrassing defeat at Bolton. At the end of the day Rooney looked tired, the team had created no chances, and he wanted to change it, so fuckin' what.

Moyesy says: I subbed Thomas Gravesen as well and you didn’t ask me that question. I think that if you substitute an 18-year-old player and you get asked about it, then I think that’s strange because I substitute people every week and I don’t get asked about it." (03/12/03)

Hearts and Minds

Moyesy was scathing of his teams lack of passion in Saturday's dreadful defeat at Bolton. He included himself in his criticism claiming that he and the players need to show a lot more heart and desire.To be honest just a fuckin' goal would do!!

Moyesy says: "We need them to show a bit of heart and some desire because, as a group, me included, we didn’t manage it .I don’t think it was anything to do with tactics. You can play whatever system you want but everyone will tell you that you have to win your individual battle with your opponent and when we’ve got nine or ten players losing their individual battles, then we’re not going to win games." (01/12/03)

Take A Look At Ourselves

Moyesy has revealed that he & the players have had a few cards on the table chats during the two week break due to the International games. We think there may have been a few cups broken & a few fingers pointed in certain directions, but it's refreshing that the Manager of the People's club included himself in the re-assessment.

Moyesy says: "The players may have re-assessed their contribution over this fortnight. But not just them, me as well, I would never, ever say it was the players and not the manager. I will always take total responsibility and I have had to look at myself, consider whether I am picking the right people and doing the right things. We all looked at ourselves and asked if there is anything that we should be doing differently, I looked at myself first to see if there was something I should have been doing that maybe I was not. Our job now is to win our next game, which is against Bolton Wanderers. That’s the most important thing now, but that win will give us confidence and hopefully we can build on that. We need to keep working hard. Our success last year was built on energetic performances, so if we stop doing that, we’ll probably not get the results. If we keep playing like we did today, I’m sure we’ll keep getting the results.” (24/11/03)

Up To Our Neck's In It

Every game is important, but none more than the next few that await us, starting with Wolves on Saturday, and a trip to Bolton next weekend.Even in the precarious position we find ourselves at the moment, Moyesy is having no talk of six pointers, but it does not alter the fact that without at least a win and a draw from our next two encounters, we will be in the doo daa a lot deeper than we are now.

Moyesy says: "The same number of points are available for these matches as any other. Every game is winnable and these games are no different.The international break has helped us in that one or two players who were injured have been able to make progress and those who have been suffering from flu will have recovered." (19/11/03)

The manager of The People's Club was chuffed with his players performances over the International weekend, but like us all, he wants them to perform for The Blues. (17/11/03)

Moyesy says: "Wayne played very well yesterday and I was delighted for him. To score the first and make the second was excellent. The experience he is gaining is terrific for an 18-year-old. It will help him because he has been in need of a goal. I told him after his recent games against Charlton and Chelsea that, although he hadn't scored, they had been his best performances of the season for us. Hopefully now he can get back to where he was for us. The goal will certainly help. I thought all our players had a good weekend. Faddy continues to improve. To play in a game of that level at the age of 20 is a great experience and there are signs from him there is a real player in the making. It was a big game for him but he showed he can cope very well in those situations. The international experience he is gaining with Scotland will certainly benefit us and help him develop further. Everybody knew about him but it was us that decided to take the chance and I am very glad we did. In time he will go on to be a great Everton player." It was a big game for Gary Naysmith playing against a terrific player in Van der Meyde. He came out on top, which says a lot for him. And I thought Thomas Gravesen was the best player on the field at Old Trafford yesterday. By the end of the match he was the outstanding Danish player. It shows what good young players we have here. Now we want them to recreate that form for Everton." (17/11/03)

We Can Get Out Of Trouble

After dropping into the bottom 3, Everton have a big struggle to get out of it. Moyesy & the players think we can.

Moyesy says: “If we’re in there then we are on merit because of the number of points we’ve got, so we need to get more points and begin to climb the table. I believe we will do and the players are telling me that we will do, so I’m looking forward to seeing it." (11/11/03)

What Do We Want Goals, When Do We Want Them Now !!!

It has been six hours and thirty eight minutes since Everton's last Premiership goal was scored by Steve Watson in the 4-0 destruction of hapless Leeds in September. Moyesy is losing patience with our lack of goal power and is telling our forwards in no uncertain terms to basically get their fingers out and put the ball in the back of the onion bag.

Moyesy says: "We would all appreciate our centre forwards getting some goals, as we need the strikers to be getting their quota of goals during the season because that's what wins you things. Our forwards should be getting into double figures. Goals obviously change games, and we had opportunities against Chelsea when the game could have changed completely by us putting one of our chances away." (10/11/03)

Points Mean Prizes

Over the next few weeks the Blues meet sides in a similar precarious position to ourselves, and Moyesy is insisting that we fight for every point. He is happy at the level of performance from his squad, but the points tally does not add up and that's what we need to change.

Moyesy says: "The next group of fixtures are against sides of a level where we have a very good chance of getting good results, but the hardest thing is to do that. We are taking nothing for granted. We need to get seven or eight players playing well every week and at a high level. There are still a lot a questions we have to ask ourselves but I would like a bit of stability. That comes from good performances, as we are beginning to see a little improvement but we need to be getting the results as well. Since the Aston Villa game the performances have been getting better. Even in that match, although we didn't play well, we were more solid and the signs were there." (07/11/03)

Eleven v Eleven

Everton go head to head today with the new look Chelsea side, after their Summer revamp from Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich. Moyesy I am sure would be delighted to have a squad of that size at his disposal, but he hopes games like these will bring the best out of his players and push us in the right direction up the table.

Moyesy says: "This is the level of competition I hope to be managing at and a level I hope to get Everton to in the future. The more experience the players get of these games the better we will be.The size of their squad means we just don't know what side they will play but whatever 11 they put out will cause us problems." (01/11/03)

Sell To Buy

The Everton Board gave no assurances at last night's AGM on how much Moyesy will have to spend when transfer window opens in January. In other words nothing. He will have to sell to buy, but nobody wants to buy.

Moyesy says: "Everybody must be thinking why we have not moved players out, but the simple reason is there is no market now. The phone is not ringing and I am not getting clubs asking about our players, and if they are, then it is not a big name or a lot of money. But in saying that we do not want to sell our best players. I said when I first arrived and also again recently that if there is no money then we work within those constraints, but don't take the team away from us when we are building one. We are monitoring targets in central midfield. I would hate to think there is any team who scouts more than we do. We do need a central midfielder but we have to raise the funds. Sean Davis has played four reserve games since his return from injury, and we have had people at all those games. Jason Koumas is an excellent talent and we have watched him but West Brom do not want to sell their best players.” (31/10/03)

Taking The Piss

Moyesy wants clubs to have more scope on testing players for drug and alcohol abuse. Under current FA regulations only an independent assessor can carry such testing, and the Everton boss would like to see the rules changed so clubs can randomly check their own players.

Moyesy says: "I find it incredible that it isn't now part of every player's contract that they must at any time receive a drug test or a breathalyser test from their club.You can't jump to conclusions, and I am certainly not suggesting anyone is guilty of anything, but on the issue of testing, it would help the clubs and help the players. Everyone knows the damage that alcohol and drugs can do to your body." (21/10/03)

Consistently Inconsistent

Moyesy has had to wait two weeks to hopefully put the disastrous Spurs performance behind him.Last season we seemed to be getting a bit of consistency to our play, but this season it has been just the opposite.

Moyesy says: "The taste of defeat is still in my mouth after losing at Spurs last time out, and that has been there for two weeks since we last played, we are determined to get back on track . What I want is another performance like we achieved against Leeds in our last home match.It was not the type of performance at Spurs that we expected on the back of the two previous games which were good victories for us.We had seen signs of improvement, that we were moving the way we wanted to go. But at Spurs we did not do at all well.The players have responded really well, they have taken the criticism from me and they are desperate to get on with things now and hopefully put things right." (18/10/03)

Angry Boss

Moyesy is not a happy bunny. This Chelski rumour that Wayne is going their for £35m is cock & bull.
Moyesy says: "There is no truth in it as far as I know, and as the manager I would expect to know about something like that. When I joined the club, I made it clear to the board that if they haven't got the money to spend, then don't give me any. But do not take away my best players." (16/10/03)

The Boys Are Back In Town

All of Everton's International stars thankfully returned fit and healthy from their weekend exploits. Moyesy who is obviously glad that they are all OK, will hopefully remind them of the last time they pulled on an Everton, away at Spurs.Let's hope for better things this Sunday.

Moyesy says: "I think all the Everton players did well for their countries. James McFadden and Gary Naysmith grabbed all the headlines, certainly in Scotland. Wayne Rooney helped England get through and it was another big learning curve for him and we’re obviously disappointed for Kevin Kilbane and Lee Carsley because they didn’t make it. Tommy Gravesen’s got through, but he got sent off at the end and I know Sweden lost to Latvia, but they’d already qualified, so Tobias Linderoth’s off to Portugal too.But as long as they come back fit, then we’ll be happy." (14/10/03)

No Break - No Kit Kat

The lads will not get any time off this week just because of the Internationals. As far as David is concerned you have to earn your privileges.

Moyesy said: "There’ll be no break for the players. They need to perform more to get breaks. We’ll be training and we’ll be trying to put things right."(05/10/03)

White Hart Pain

It took us 51 years to break our Elland Road hoodoo last season, and our second longest jinx ground is looming on Saturday at White Hart Lane.It was August 1985 when a Gary Lineker goal got us maximum points against Spurs. Moyesy not one to be phased by records is more concerned that Tottenham find themselves without a manager since the sacking of Glenda (he did not see that coming) Hoddle last week.If we throw in a performance like we did last weekend we should hopefully better our dismal record of only four draws in the last eight years.

Moyesy says: "They are in a transitional period at Spurs and players will be anxiously waiting to see who is appointed.They will be trying to get as many good performances in as they can leading up to the new appointment because they are facing uncertain times as well. White Hart Lane is a hard place to go. They are one of the really big clubs and David Pleat is not new to being in charge. He has been there before and he will be enjoying the job.But we want to go there and get a win. We want to continue to push up the table. Tottenham are in need of a victory. But they will not want it any more than us. It is important we win in order to climb the table and establish ourselves in the top half.If we perform as well as we did last Sunday, that will lead to results. (02/10/03)

Goals Galore (Please)

Moyesy might be able to field three different strike partnerships at the moment, but he still cannot find the right blend to get us scoring again in the Premiership.With only one goal from open play in our last three league games, the onus is on the strikers to come up with the goods, as there is plenty of talent waiting in the wings.

Moyesy says :“I haven’t had as many striking options at the club since I’ve been here but we need to score some more goals, we’ve not scored enough goals in the Premiership. We need to get the goals and make the chances.We missed a lot against Middlesbrough. I thought we had opportunities here against Liverpool but we didn’t score them, so we need to try and convert the opportunities we’ve had.They say the table does not lie, but hopefully it does for us at this stage of the season and we can put a few things right and get us back up the table to the position we held last term." (27/09/03)

I Could Have Been A Contender

Moyesy today played down the hand bag at ten paces incident with Steve 'Shithouse' McLaren. Stewards and the fourth official had to intervene, when it looked like Moyesy was going to do the 'Boro Knob Jockey good time, for being a big tit if nothing else. Moyesy was rumoured to have said that he would see him in the car park afterwards with all his mates as well if he wanted, and he would DO them all.Mc Laren was later seen running off through the back streets of Middlesbrough.

Moyesy says :"Tommy went to kick the ball back to their goalkeeper and one of their players closed him down. It made it looked as though we had instructed him to keep possession which was nonsense.The player wanted to kick it into their box, and the player's closed him down, so it was rather difficult to kick it there. (22/09/03)

Forced Hand

David Moyes came out today and gave his verdict on his Debutants from Saturday's draw with the Geordies.It seems his hand was forced into giving three of them enforced starts due to injuries to key players.

Moyesy says :"Alessandro Pistone failed a fitness test prior to the game, otherwise I probably wouldn't have started with Kevin. I would have given him more chance to bed himself in here. I think they all did okay but really to me, they looked like players who hadn't been at the club long and aren't quite up to what I want from them.But it wasn't just down to them, it was down to the players who have been here and know exactly what I do want.To be honest, I thought the whole team looked as though they hadn't known each other very long." (16/09/03)

Hard Days Night For The Fab Four

The Fab Four are going to have to work Eight Days A Week to secure a place in Moyesy's starting line up

Moyesy says:The new boys are joining a group of players who did really well last season and they are going to have to work very hard to do well in that group, he revealed. I am pleased to get players in to boost the squad. But there are a lot of good players here already. What we have done is add to the options and improve the competition for places. If we hadn't added to the team we would have been five players down from where we were last season. I felt we needed to bring in a number of faces who can add to my options but also offer us a little bit of zest as well.(03/09/03)

Youngsters Brought In

Moyesy says: "All the players who we've brought in today are international players. We've brought in James McFadden, who's 20, Francis Jeffers, who's 22 and Kevin Kilbane, who's 26. We are trying to address the age here and try and build a young squad for the future, maybe not for immediately. Hopefully if they improve, the way the other players here have improved, then they will go on to become very good players. We’ve not been able to attract the players at present that would go right into the team because of the resources. So, we’ve gone for potential - with the hope that the potential will be fulfilled and become good players. It was only said a few weeks ago that Everton brought down the likes of Gary Naysmith and David Weir in similar circumstances and both of them have proved to be good additions to the squad at Everton.” (01/09/03)

Derby Day Honesty

After the Derby game, David Moyes has once again come out & been honest & up front with the fans.

Moyesy says: "You could see the difference between the quality at either end, attacking and defending. We try really hard to bridge the gap. There is a big gulf in finances between us and the other big clubs and what they are able to do with it. We cannot hide that fact. We can try to make it work the best we can. And we are doing that; we are happy to get as close to Arsenal and Manchester United as we can. But everybody knows that gulf is there, the question is whether Everton - within their means - are having a go at closing it as best we can. I think we are making a real effort to close that gap, and in the Liverpool game we could have scored a couple of goals that would have changed the outcome. But our defenders made mistakes and that cost us the chance of winning it. We worked hard. Nobody can question the effort and commitment of the players. In every game our players attempt to do everything they can, but until we get more quality in here that is all we can ask of them. At the moment my players are doing a brilliant job. They are smashing - we just have to get on with it.

On the lack of transfers Moyesy says: "The big fish we wanted to bring in have now all gone. We may try to add one or two to the fringes to bolster the squad but that is all." (01/09/03)

Pressure On Hoolahoop

With the media, putting the pressure on Geraldine Pop Out Eyes Hoolahoop, Moyesy is concentrating on the Everton team, with a gentle twist o the knife.

Moyesy says: "There is a massive gulf between the positions of the clubs and the spending power over the years, but we have tried to make that gulf as close as we possibly can and at the moment the players we have here are making a really good job of it."

Lets make sure we do our part today & get right behind the boys from the off. (30/08/03)

Optimistic For Hardest Game of Season

Moyesy thinks today's game at Arsenal is Everton's hardest game of the season. He reckons we can handle it, as we have become hard to beat.

Moyesy says: "In a lot of ways Arsenal away is probably the hardest test we could have asked for on the opening day, because in a strange way the trip down to London is even harder than the short journey to Manchester. We will have to be at our very best to come away with a result. But the thing with Everton now is we are hard to beat wherever we go. In all our games last season there were only one or two occasions when we weren't in with a fighting chance all the way to the end and we want that to continue this season." (16/08/03)

Sorry, well nearly

Only an improved second half performance helped Moyesy from apologizing to the fans at Roda.

Moyesy says: "I thought the supporters were really good and I have to say that I nearly had to go and say sorry to them, especially after the way things turned out in the first half. At least in the second half there was a little bit more to cheer about and it was just unfortunate that it was at the opposite end to them. But I have to thank them because once again they did very well for us and that has always been the case since I have been at the club."

Striker Wanted

David Moyes is playing with the idea of bringing in a forward on a short term basis.

Moyesy said: "I am told Wayne will be missing for a month. That leaves us short as Duncan Ferguson is suspended for the first three games. I may have have to look at bringing someone in - if only on loan - to tide us over. At present we are going into the season with Kevin Campbell, Tomasz Radzinski and Nick Chadwick as our only available forwards. This is a situation I will need to assess carefully."(28/07/03)

Moyesy Keen To Learn

The transfer speculation will go on all Summer, but we don't think anything will happen this week, as Moyesy is a student at a management course for a week, starting today. The manager of the People's Club is eager to pick more management skills, as well as any new training techniques. Also on the course is former Blues' boss Walter Smith. Who'll be getting tips from who? (09/06/03)

David Moyes Last Season