David Moyes has exposed two of David Sullivan’s biggest West Ham blunders at Everton and it is going to be a very hard watch for the Hammers.
David Sullivan has been under the spotlight at West Ham ever since the parting of the ways with David Moyes.
Especially since his return to the Premier League with Everton.
After two spells with the Hammers, Moyes is now into his second spell with the Toffees.
It was always going to be the case that any success Moyes enjoyed with Everton would pile pressure on Sullivan, especially when West Ham are struggling.
Graham Potter is now the man charged with getting West Ham back on an upward trajectory.
The jury remains out but there were encouraging signs in the 3-0 win over Nottingham Forest.
Maintaining that level of performance will be key.
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The success the Hammers enjoyed for four-and-a-half years under Moyes took Sullivan and the West Ham board out of the firing line after a fan uprising was interrupted by the pandemic.
Moyes exposes two of Sullivan’s biggest West Ham blunders
Since Moyes left and resurfaced at Everton, West Ham handed full control of recruitment to Tim Steidten – who he famously fell out with towards the end of his Hammers tenure.
Steidten’s only summer in charge of West Ham transfers was a flop as £155m was spent on nine players.
The German and Moyes’ replacement Julen Lopetegui have since been sacked, leaving Potter and head of recruitment Kyle Macaulay working with de facto director of football Sullivan on signings.
After a poor start in the first three games of the season and what many feel was an underwhelming window, two big decisions by the Hammers’ majority owner have been cast into the spotlight.
And it is Moyes who has exposed two of Sullivan’s biggest West Ham blunders at Everton.
The former Hammers boss’s actions highlighted costly decisions at boardroom level, adding fuel to the feeling among fans that big changes are needed to how the club operates.
Everton boss David Moyes gives Jack Grealish a pat on the back
Photo by Andrew Kearns – CameraSport via Getty Images
During the window, it was reported that it was a two-horse race between the West Ham and Everton to sign Jack Grealish from Manchester City on loan.
Everything about a potential move for Jack Grealish appealed to West Ham fans.
The signs looked good when it was reported that Potter was a big fan of Grealish and that the player – more importantly – was open to a move to the London Stadium.
Moyes lured Grealish to Everton, though, as the Irons withdrew their interest.
When it was put to West Ham’s board whether the club were ever seriously in for Grealish, the response was brutal.
It was confirmed the club did consider rivalling Everton for the England star.
Player of the month Grealish has Hammers eating their words
But West Ham admitted they had serious reservations about the 29-year-old playmaker, who they described as a ‘troubled individual’.
The Hammers did say Moyes might be capable of getting the best out of Grealish, as he had done with Jesse Lingard at West Ham.
That decision and the reasoning has been made to look one of the worst transfer calls West Ham have made in many years.
Not least because Grealish looks happy, fit, focused, motivated and is flying already at Everton.
It has all been underlined by Grealish winning the first Premier League player of the month award of the new season.
How embarrassing for West Ham.
But it gets worse.
David Moyes speaks to Everton midfielder Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall
Photo by Visionhaus/Getty Images
West Ham also turned down best attacking Englishman
Because Grealish has not even been the best attacking Englishman in the top flight statistically.
And the man who takes that honour adds even more scrutiny to Sullivan’s summer transfer calls.
It was widely reported in the summer that West Ham held talks with Chelsea over the sale of Mohammed Kudus.
Chelsea were offering West Ham money plus Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall for Kudus.
The Hammers had been linked with Blues outcast Dewsbury-Hall from the moment Potter arrived and brought Macaulay over from Chelsea.
But the move collapsed because West Ham wanted straight cash for Kudus – as reaffirmed by The Athletic this week.
The club may claim that was down to PSR accounting.
The Hammers ended up having to sell to rivals Spurs instead and Dewsbury-Hall signed for Everton in an initial £25m deal.
Now it is perfectly clear Moyes has exposed another Hammers clanger.
Because while Grealish has been named Premier League player of the month for his fast start at Everton after his West Ham snub, Dewsbury-Hall has officially been the best attacking English player in the entire top flight.
In fact Opta has revealed no player has created more chances in the Premier League this season than Dewsbury-Hall (eight), who has already played more league minutes for the Toffees (270) than he did for Chelsea in the 2024-25 campaign (259).
Both players could be in West Ham’s team and not Everton’s right now.
Based on the start they have made to life under Moyes, they could prove to be among Sullivan’s biggest blunders yet.