Don’t Expect Moyes to be Bullied

In today’s transfer market the spending gulf between the top and bottom clubs is vast. But there is now even a money gulf between the top clubs. Two teams who have recently lived in their neighbour’s shadow are enjoying their own very different resurgences, one is free-spending whilst the other uses its limited funds wisely. Manchester city’s new owners have limitless bags of cash to spend and are attempting to mount an attack upon the established top four. Meanwhile, Everton have improved unrecognisably under the expert management of David Moyes. Everton, not a rich club by premier league standards, manage to consistently out-gun their big spending premiership rivals and to finish in the European places. I personally wouldn’t bet against them doing it again this year. Like their close neighbours, Everton could really do with some investment and a new stadium, But Moyes and chairman bill Kenwright continue to just get on with the job, and Everton continue to impress. Everton and Manchester City are now embroiled in one of the most interesting transfer stories of the summer.

Big Money has now made certain super-rich clubs capable of signing a all their transfer targets, leaving the smaller clubs in a position where saying ‘no’ is impossible. City’s impressive spending power has allowed them to amass a formidable strikeforce, but any armchair analyst can see that there is a lack of balance in the side and defensive players are urgently required. Mark Hughes’ primary target is Everton’s Joleon Lescott, who last year had the season of his life. In the Everton defence Lescot was partnered with Phil Jagielka who is now a long term injury victim. If Moyes were to lose Lescott to Man City, the defence that performed so well last year will be broken up entirely. Recent experience tells us that the amount of money available at Eastlands means that a deal is likely.

Hughes has made offers of 15 and 18 million to date, But Moyes has refused to do business, aware that selling his best players to what will probably prove his closest rival is a bad move. Hughes has clearly been riled by Everton’s position on the matter and has, somewhat embarrassingly stating that he would “go over Moyes’ head” and do a deal “with the decision makers”. This has left David Moyes understandably furious, and interestingly, reports have begun to emerge linking city with other defensive targets, notably Matthew Upson.

Even if Everton hold firm over the player’s not for sale status, they will never be able to match City’s wages, and Lescott, who is earning the going rate for a player of his ability at Everton, can suddenly match the league’s top earners with a move to City, tempting even to the most committed of players. In the face of these amounts of money the player will always want to move. In response Lescott has duly handed in a transfer request, which Moyes has rejected. His man-management skills will now be put to the test.

Looking at the transfer sagas of the close season in a wider context we can see that with such huge amounts of money involved managers will be made to work just as hard during the close season as they will have to during the regular season. The precedent was set last season by Martin O’Neil in the big story of last summer, the proposed transfer of Gareth Barry to Liverpool. O’Neil remained determined that if Barry was to leave, it would be for an inflated fee, regardless of the players wishes and contract length. This approach however achieved limited success, as Barry, who was nearing the end of his contract stayed at Villa, only to leave for Man City a year later, for 12 million, while Liverpool were willing to pay around 20 million. Similarly this year, Rafa Benitez attempted to keep Alonso at Liverpool in the face of heavy pressure from Real Madrid. Benitez ultimately failed, his position undermined somewhat by his willingness to sell Alonso for 15 million, just a year earlier. But for Moyes a happy ending is more likely, Lescott has four years remaining on his contract, so a the prospect of him leaving under the Bosman ruling in the near future is out of the question and with the transfer window set to slam shut in a little over two weeks, Hughes has little option but to look at other targets or make an over the top offer that has to be accepted. Either way expect more twists in this story. As for the impact of limitless money in football, it looks as though transfer market hostility is more popular than ever.

Ripe For Investment

On the way back from some temporary work, work that has been shortened in length by swine flu (do not ask), but work for two more weeks, two fellow YNWAWK contributors (Robbie and Josh) and myself began to discuss the ripeness of teams for foreign investment. This is to say, how well the nucleus of a team could adapt to an influx of new, expensive players. The nucleus was important, because we were judging the ripeness with regard to the potential for immediate, staggering success. The conversation fell to the difference between a team who have received the overwhelming foreign investment post-Abramovich (Manchester City) and a team who have not (Everton).

Both teams have a large, loyal fanbase and exist within the contemporary heartland of Premier League football, the northwest. But, when you scroll through the Everton team and their yearly successes under David Moyes, you begin to realise that this is a team that could provide instant results (more instant that City, whose overhaul seems to cover nearly every position) if provided with instant money for the right signings. In the car, we imagined that Lescott could move to left back, with a big arrival joining Jagielka in central defence and that Howard would be more than capable of providing a Premier League winning standard of keeping. You can imagine Arteta thriving with a selection of world-class grinders/deep playmakers around him. Fellaini/Cahill would become the spark of the bench, with Yakubu working hard (if fit) with £30m wingers either side of him and a new mystery arrival from Barcelona in behind.

Imaginary/speculative teams – always worth a discussion.

But, after these suppositions, and the realisation that if the money that went to City had arrived at Goodison Park, Everton could’ve challenged quickly and strongly, it became clear that this would butcher an element of Everton’s presence in the league. To move from silky dogfighters to the silky expectations of big investment would deny Everton fans and David Moyes, the rewards that the nature of their achievements provides. After several years on the fringe of The Big Four, Everton fans may wish for the investment that would push them over the edge, and if spent well, it definitely could. But maybe, the style of play that they love (and others despise) in Cahill, Fellaini and even their manager, would go.

Here, I came to the conclusion that a team’s current nucleus and mentality is irrelevant, and that in reality, every team is ripe for large (whether foreign or domestic) investment. There is no turning down investment on this scale.

Outside of the boardroom, we are left to consider whether the Abu Dhabi Group were looking at The City of Manchester Stadium and shirt sales, or Stephen Ireland and Michael Johnson. And what do you think Everton fans, should they have been looking a bit further west?


Thanks to Josh and Robbie for their role in the original discussion.


Jack Burston


GoonerDale had this to add:

'Very interesting, the stadium part is the most valid point, because this is why Roman opted for Chelsea. Initially, he was buying Spurs, but his helicopter journey over London passed by Stamford Bridge and he decided that he wanted Chelsea because the hotel and the Chelsea village complex attached to it looked like 'a more attractive prospect'. He didn't care that they had Champions League football, he didn't consider the huge debt, the stadium was the deciding factor!'