Move boldly forward, not blindly backward
EVERTON need a new voice and new impetus – not yesterday’s man.
So rehiring David Moyes would be a ridiculous thing to do.
I understand there might be a short-term pull for some Evertonians, but this is a time to be bold and brave – not to go backwards.
It’s a time for Farhad Moshiri and Bill Kenwright to say, “You know what, let’s get the man we want for the next few years now, let’s start making a proper plan”.
That is something Everton have lacked for a while now as they have veered wildly between different managers with different styles.
I’m not even convinced Moyes would definitely keep them up. What I do know for certain is that, despite the fact four big-name bosses have been axed in recent weeks, there has never been a better time to be a Premier League manager.
Yes, being a top-flight football manager is stressful but, compared to the real world, it’s not a bit.
Careers
Look at Quique Sanchez Flores, he will have come away from his few weeks in charge at Watford having made more money than some managers will earn in their careers.
And he’ll probably walk into a job somewhere else sooner rather than later, so it’s happy days.
What I do wonder, given the current turnover of managers, is whether we will now start to see more and more clubs handing out maximum oneyear contracts when they hire a new gaffer in a bid to protect themselves from such hefty pay-offs. It would certainly make financial sense, given the fact some clubs have nearly bankrupted themselves paying compensation to managers, which is a ridiculous state of affairs.
The only problem with one-year contracts, though, is that ultimately the best managers will start asking for two or three times what they would charge over the course of a two or three-year deal to compensate for the lack of long-term security.
And, while that might become the norm for a while, I’d go the other way if I was a chairman by handing out proper, long-term deals.
It’s no coincidence that the champions of England and the champions of Europe both have managers who are working on longer contracts. Liverpool weren’t exactly flying when they handed Jurgen Klopp a six-year contract in 2016, were they?
But they are now and that move looks genius.
It kicked into the long grass any worries Klopp might have about his long-term future so he could concentrate on building his team and gave Liverpool protection in case clubs, such as Real Madrid or Barcelona, came calling.
Rewards
It also told the players that the manager was going nowhere and that’s a powerful message to send to any group. Success, however relative, is built on strong foundations.
Look at the job Sean Dyche has done at Burnley and the one Eddie Howe has done at Bournemouth. We don’t see or hear from their owners, they just back their managers to get on with it – and they have reaped the rewards for that.
Now Everton need to make the right appointment.
And when the contract is signed, they need to give their man the time he needs to make them a club to be reckoned with again.