David Moyes Reflects on Everton's Frustrating Transfer Deadline Day
David Moyes cut a frustrated figure as he surveyed what was left of his Everton squad after a fraught deadline day – but he insisted there is still enough in the dressing room to stay clear of a relegation scrap.
A chaotic final 24 hours of the transfer window saw a late move for Monaco striker Folarin Balogun collapse, while Iliman Ndiaye departed for Manchester City. By the time the dust settled, Moyes was left with just 18 senior outfield players, and only one recognised striker to lead the line.
“Disappointed we didn't do more business, disappointed things didn't go our way in the end,” Moyes admitted in his pre-match press conference ahead of Manchester United’s visit on Sunday. “But sometimes in football you have to live with disappointments and we will and we'll move on.”
The Balogun saga became the symbol of Everton’s window. Monaco managing director Thiago Scuro revealed the forward pulled out of a return to the Premier League because of how he felt he had been treated by Everton.
An issue flagged during the USA international’s medical prompted the club to try to renegotiate the terms of a deal believed to be worth around £40 million. Both Everton and Monaco were still willing to push ahead, but Balogun ultimately walked away.
“There were lots of different bits to it. It wasn't anybody's fault,” Moyes said. “Ultimately it happens in football a lot. The player had a problem in his medical and that was simply it.”
The failed deal leaves Moyes exposed. Everton flirted with European qualification for much of last season before a late slide saw them finish 13th. That taste of the top half has sharpened expectations inside the club, not dulled them.
Moyes has been clear about his ambition since walking back through the doors at Goodison Park: this is not a manager who intends to spend his twilight years firefighting at the bottom of the table.
“I'm getting too old now to be sitting around at the bottom end. I've said that to the players here when I came in,” he said. “The job is that we challenge as close to the top end of the league as we can.”
He knows the outside view. A thin squad, one senior striker, and a window that ended with more questions than answers. But he also knows what last season’s group produced when momentum was with them.
“I've got to say, they've done a brilliant job of it last year, and I don't think we were expected to do so well as what we've done,” he reflected. “I've got to hope that we can do that again. There might not be a great expectation on us at this moment in time, but behind the scenes I'm rallying them.”
The numbers on the squad list are light. The expectations, at least from the man in charge, are anything but. With Manchester United arriving on Sunday, Everton will not have to wait long to discover whether belief can paper over the cracks left by a brutal deadline day.
