Everton manager David Moyes is determined to 'go again' after a disappointing end to the Premier League campaign
LONDON, ENGLAND - MAY 24: David Moyes, Manager of Everton, reacts during the Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and Everton at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on May 24, 2026 in London, England. (Photo by Alex Pantling/Getty Images)
David Moyes reacts during the Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and Everton(Image: Alex Pantling/Getty Images)
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David Moyes says Everton need to ‘go again’ next season as the club looks to build on a campaign that ended in frustration.
The priority for the first full season under the ownership of the Friedkin Group was stability and that was achieved. But a run of seven winless games at the end of the season destroyed hopes of Europe that had started to look within reach.
Speaking after a narrow defeat at Tottenham Hotspur left Everton in 13th place - where they finished last season - Moyes conceded he was disappointed with how the campaign ended.
Asked what he thought would represent progress next year, the Blues boss said: “We need to go again. We've made some small steps in good directions for long parts of the season.
“We've done pretty well, but you can see we've been sort of squeezed a little bit, around January we were squeezed a little bit. And also not so much the run-in, we’ve had most of the players available and fit, Jarrad Branthwaite obviously was a huge miss when we'd just got him back.
“Hopefully we're able to continue to build and go in the right direction. I don't think we're ever going to be able to go and spend £200m and do that but if we can make some extra steps and move on… I hoped it would have been better than where we finished that's for sure, because I just thought, for most of the season, we would have been in a stronger position.”
Everton entered the March international break in touch with the top six after a promising season developed off the back of impressive away form that included statement wins at Manchester United and Aston Villa.
But just three points from the final seven matches left the Blues in the bottom half, just one point better off than the total they earned in each of the previous two campaigns.
Asked whether he thought that was a fair reflection of the season, Moyes said: “Probably not, but I think it's more of a reflection of what the Premier League's been like this year.
“I didn't think for a minute that Tottenham, West Ham or Nottingham Forest could go down. I thought their squads were too strong. I thought their teams were too good. I couldn't see how that could happen.
“Obviously, a couple of teams sort of just dropped away a little bit, but I didn't see how any of those teams could be involved in it, I really didn't, so for us not to be near it, and let's be fair, probably for most of the season we've been in the top eight, nine.
“But you have to play all the games and I remember when I first joined Everton many years ago, Everton used to always just get safe at Easter, get safe at Easter and that was it, but hopefully that's not the same with this group.”