Alex Keble analyses Everton's style, stats and tactics on David Moyes' return, compared to their last Premier League match under Sean Dyche.
When Everton needed a saviour, it’s hardly surprising they turned to David Moyes.
When Moyes took charge in 2002 Everton were regular relegation candidates, but over the next 11 years they recorded eight top-seven finishes, reached the UEFA Champions League once, and narrowly lost the 2009 FA Cup final.
Twenty three years on, he finds the club in a similar position.
Everton won only three of their first 20 Premier League matches and drew blanks in eight of their final 10 under Sean Dyche, leaving them a single point above the relegation zone.
The hard work begins in earnest.
Moyes wants more control and less directness
The outcome was the same, and even the team selection was similar, but Moyes did attempt to change a few things on Wednesday in the 1-0 home defeat to Aston Villa.
“We’ve tried to control the game a bit more,” Everton defender James Tarkowski said after the match. “We tried to be a bit calmer moving it [the ball] around and not be so direct.
“But he [Moyes] still wants us to be progressive and get the ball forward, just not initially getting it forward too early if we can have that control around the back. Through time, I’m sure we’ll morph into what he wants us to be.”
Everton attempted 468 passes and had 250 touches of the ball in the middle third, on both counts their fourth-most in a game this season, reflecting that desire to be a bit more patient.
Dyche v Moyes: Passes and touches comparison
| 2024/25 | Ave. under Dyche | Ave. under Moyes v Villa |
| Passes attempted | 385.8 | 468.0 |
|---|---|---|
| Touches in middle third | 201.8 | 250.0 |
That attempt to be less direct, and more controlled, is also captured in the team attempting 10 take-ons and completing only one - their lowest numbers in the Premier League this season - and in the stark visual difference between Everton's pass map against Villa and in Dyche’s last league match, at AFC Bournemouth.
But it’s telling that Everton miscontrolled the ball 20 times, the second-most in a league match this season.
Asking for more patience in possession comes with risks, and it’s probably no coincidence that Everton also made three errors leading to a shot against Villa, their joint-most in 2024/25.
Moyes wanted to up attacking threat - without changing the shape.
Everton lined up in the same 4-2-3-1 formation against Villa and, with so little time to train since arriving, it made sense for Moyes to pick almost the same players.
Abdoulaye Doucoure continued as a makeshift No 10, Dominic Calvert-Lewin came in for the injured Armando Broja, and Jack Harrison was given the nod on the right.
Line-up v AFC Bournemouth
Line-up v Aston Villa
For Moyes, the method was more important than the personnel.
“We encouraged them to get more into the box and get people in the box more often - get more shots, get more crosses,” he said after the game. “We obviously need to double those numbers.”
Everton amassed an Expected Goals (xG) of 1.14 against Villa, their fifth-highest total of the season, and also attempted 20 crosses, their sixth-most. However, their shot count (10) and total of six chances created did not compare favourably to their season averages.
What changed v Aston Villa
| 2024/25 | Ave. under Dyche | Ave. under Moyes v Villa |
| xG | 0.97 | 1.14 |
|---|---|---|
| Crosses attempted | 17.5 | 20.0 |
| Chances created | 8.2 | 6.0 |
| Shots | 11.4 | 10.0 |
Calvert-Lewin's late miss, when he scooped the ball over the bar with the goal gaping, summed up just how much work there is ahead; in coaching, in the transfer market, and in raising morale.
“I can see Sean [Dyche] got in a great group of players with their attitude and commitment, but we desperately need to add some quality in certain areas, mainly to create and craft goals and finish as well,” Moyes said. “We need to get those levels up.”
Getting those levels up will require time, too.
Moyes only has three days on the training pitch before Everton host Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday.
Defeat could leave the Toffees in the bottom three, but if they are careful in possession, and if they can up those attacking numbers, a wounded Spurs are there for the taking.
