The next move may prove the biggest of the Scot’s career
DAVID MOYES has been advised to sit tight and make no rash decisions because his next job is the most important of his career.
The advice comes from his long-time friend Pat Nevin, who also insists that his fellow-Scot’s label as a three-time failure is grossly unfair.
Moyes resigned as Sunderland boss last Monday after the Black Cats’ relegation to the Championship.
Following on from his sackings after a single season at Manchester United and just 42 matches at Real Sociedad, Nevin accepts that Moyes’ name might be toxic just now but urges him not to be panicked into accepting the first offer that comes along.
“The next job is massive for David,” says Nevin. “It’s very, very important that he chooses the right club.
“On the last two occasions he’s got back into management very quickly and you wonder if it’s best to hang back this time to make sure it’s a place where there’s a real possibility of doing something.
“It’s highly unlikely he’s going to get a job in the Premier League, though that doesn’t mean he’s not capable of managing again at the top level.
“I would think the realistic option would be a Championship team.
“If the hunger is still there he’ll want to get back into it. But his offers will be limited now, and if it’s a job that is borderline impossible with the finances available, I’d hope that David wouldn’t take it.”
Statistically there’s a strong possibility that Moyes will eventually return to the Premier League.
For all the perceived dominance of foreign bosses in the top flight, clubs are more likely to give a second, third or fourth chance to a homegrown boss than one from overseas.
Nine of the 11 men who have managed three or more Premier League clubs in the last decade are British, including Moyes himself.
“I’m biased because I’ve known David since he was 14, but I still think he’s a very good manager,” Nevin adds.
“We were at Celtic Boys Club. We played together a few times and we were both on S forms at Celtic.
“He’s very honest. He has integrity. For David, resigning from Sunderland and waiving the compensation was the right thing to do.
“He’s had three jobs in a row when it’s not gone so well, but all were very difficult in their own way.
“The expectations at United were extraordinary. They’d just won the League but the team was on its last legs and a lot of work was needed.
“He thought he had four or five years. If David had known he was going to be judged after a season he’d have spent the money more quickly.
“Since then Louis van Gaal, and even Jose Mourinho, have found it difficult.
“Managing in a foreign country is always going to be a test and when David took the job at Sunderland he was promised funds that didn’t materialise.
“I watched the guy try every system imaginable to make it work. But the bottom line was that he couldn’t get quality players in. I think to some degree he was sold a pup.
“The money simply wasn’t there to compete at Premier League level.”