David Moyes has been the unsung hero of the Premier League in the past 7 years. He has transformed an aging Everton team in fear of relegation every season into a team consistently knocking on the door of the ‘Big Four’. However, although Moyes has worked these miracles, he will not be able to do so for much longer with Everton’s current financial predicament.
Aston Villa, Tottenham Hotspur and of course, Manchester City have all had a much larger budget than Everton in recent years, but Moyes’ shrewd business with the likes of Tim Cahill, Mikel Arteta and Phil Jagielka has made Everton the Premier Leagues’ biggest overachievers. This cannot continue much longer.
Everton seem able to break their transfer record every summer with James Beattie (£6m), Andrew Johnson (£8m), Yakubu (£11m) and Maroune Fellaini (£15m) all being bought in the past 4 years. However, one player is not going to help break that ‘Big Four’, four or five will. Everton need massive financial backing. But would Everton fans trust a man from the Middle East with their beloved football club? As an Everton fan I certainly would not. This club needs an ex player fronted consortium to take it forward to the Champions League and beyond. A man who could relate to the fans and understand the correct way to run the club.
Back to reality for a moment. An ex player fronted consortium seems unlikely for now, so Everton must think about this summers’ transfer dealings that are to be done. I have faith in Moyes’ ability to take players on the cheap from lower league clubs and turn them into consistent Premier League performers. I’m talking about players like Chris Eagles of Burnley, Joe Ledley of Cardiff, Fabian Delph of Leeds and Kyle Naughton of Sheffield United. Not only are these players young, they are British based and the ideal players to continue Evertons’ philosophy of running a club on a shoestring.
These type of deals need to be done as soon as possible, otherwise a repeat of last years’ start to the season is imminent, where Everton failed to win a home game until November.
Evertons’ motto is ‘Nil Satis Nisi Optimum’, latin for ‘Nothing But The Best Is Good Enough’. I don’t think that Everton fans can expect the best, but they would certainly settle for an able squad that would break into that ‘Big Four’ and bring home a trophy, any trophy, one that has been sought after by the fans for fourteen long years.
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