EXCLUSIVE: Former Everton striker Tony Cottee believes supporters need to show patience with Blues boss David Moyes
Everton supporters need to be “careful” when criticising David Moyes – as the club needs patience and stability at Hill Dickinson Stadium. That’s the verdict of former striker Tony Cottee, who scored 99 goals in 241 matches for the Blues between 1988-94.
Everton churned through eight managers in as many years under Farhad Moshiri, with the last of those, Sean Dyche, being sacked by new owners The Friedkin Group just 22 days after their takeover was complete after picking up just 17 points from the first half of the club’s final season at Goodison Park.
Despite the Blues being just one point above the relegation zone when Moyes, who steered them to nine top-eight finishes, including their highest ever Premier League position of fourth in 2004/05, returned, the Glaswegian gaffer ultimately guided them to 13th last term, avoiding the drop with five matches to spare and winning five away games in the process after just one success on the road over the previous year. However, such is the fickle nature of football in 2025: with predecessor Dyche becoming Nottingham Forest’s third manager of this season before the clocks went back, successive defeats, culminating with the 3-0 home reversal to Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday, Everton’s first-ever loss in a competitive fixture at Hill Dickinson Stadium, has resulted in the 62-year-old coming under some intense scrutiny from sections of the fanbase.
Cottee believes such fume is foolhardy, though, and told the ECHO: “I think it’s unfair to see some of the Everton fans questioning David Moyes, but I think it’s the modern world. Everyone is an expert these days, everyone has got an opinion and can go on social media or other platforms and vent their anger.
“We’re all great managers when we’re sitting in the stands, myself included. My Dad used to tell me: ‘Son, you never missed a chance. Whenever you missed a chance, I put the rebound in!’
“It’s difficult. Sometimes you don’t appreciate how good managers are until they leave, and the same goes for players too, that’s just how it is in football.
“Arsenal struggled a little bit, Tottenham have had some dodgy results and many other clubs have had a difficult time in that first season. I think the last thing Everton fans need to do is put pressure on David Moyes – he’s a fabulous manager – has been and will be in the future.
“Everton need that stability throughout the first couple of years at the new stadium. I think with David Moyes you get stability.”
Cottee, speaking in association with Fruity Slots, which recommends UKGC-licensed online casinos, added: “People say: ‘We need more attacking football, blah, blah, blah.’ I get that, but the club needs to stay in the Premier League and start to rebuild.
“They’ve got the new stadium and more revenue coming in. Now they need to get the players who can get Everton back into the top half of the table and, more importantly, win a trophy.
“That’s what the Evertonians are crying out for. It’s coming up to 31 years now, it’s too long, it’s miles too long for Everton not to win anything.
Tony Cottee salutes the fans as former players take to the field at the end of Everton's final game at Goodison Park against Southampton on May 18, 2025
Tony Cottee salutes the fans as former players take to the field at the end of Everton's final game at Goodison Park against Southampton on May 18, 2025
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“I don’t see how criticising the manager helps things. I think David is a safe pair of hands.
“I’m not saying that he’s going to be there in 10 years’ time because I’m pretty certain he doesn’t think that either, but you need that stability throughout the transitional period. Whether it’s the manager, his staff, the team or the supporters, it’s hard because for all those years you’ve been playing at Goodison Park and now you’re at Hill Dickinson Stadium.”
East Ender Cottee, born in Forest Gate, played for West Ham United both before and after his six-year spell on Merseyside, and with Moyes having delivered the UEFA Europa Conference League for them in 2023, to end their 43-year trophy drought, he believes that their subsequent struggles – they’re now on their third manager since and second bottom of the Premier League – demonstrates how accomplished the Scot, who has managed more Premier League games than anyone other than serial title winners Alex Ferguson at Manchester United and Arsene Wenger at Arsenal, is.
He said: “If you look at the mess that West Ham are in now compared to where they were under David Moyes, they’re in massive relegation trouble, you’ve got to be a little bit careful with things. It was only 2023 when they won the Conference League but there are only a couple of players, Jarrod Bowen and Lucas Paqueta who are still in the team from two years ago, which is ridiculous.
“It can happen that quickly. We’ve seen it with many other clubs where you have a good season, the next is not so good and then by the third, you’re in trouble.
“You need stability when you move stadiums. Fans sometimes don’t appreciate how difficult that is.
“I’d urge the Evertonians to show a bit of patience because you’re going to get results like the Tottenham game on Sunday. It’s only one defeat, they went six games unbeaten at home before that.
“I’ll stick with what I said at the start of the season, I honestly think that Everton will finish in the top 10. They might not be challenging for Champions League places but if they can get themselves in the top half and maybe have a good FA Cup run then that’s a decent first season for the club at the new stadium.
“You’ve just got to be patient with David. While he might not be the man to win the trophy, let him put the foundations in place.”
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