/ 7 November 2017

Five things on new West Ham boss David Moyes

David Moyes built up a formidable reputation during his long spell in charge of Everton but he looked a haunted man towards the end of his short tenure at Old Trafford.
David Moyes built up a formidable reputation during his long spell in charge of Everton but he looked a haunted man towards the end of his short tenure at Old Trafford.

David Moyes was appointed manager of Premier League strugglers West Ham on Tuesday following the sacking of Slaven Bilic. AFP highlights five things about the former Everton and Manchester United boss.

Everton reign

Moyes is third on the list of the longest Premier League managerial reigns behind only Arsene Wenger at Arsenal and former Manchester United boss Alex Ferguson. Moyes joined the Merseyside club from Preston in 2002 and his 11 years at the club made him the longest-serving manager there since Harry Catterick in the 1960s and 70s. He failed to win any silverware but the club consistently punched above its weight despite financial limitations.

The ‘Chosen One’

Moyes was handed the daunting task of replacing Ferguson at Old Trafford in 2013 after two decades of trophy-laden success but his reign quickly soured. Moyes took charge of a group of players who had won the 2012-13 Premier League title by 11 points but he was sacked just 10 months into a six-year contract and the club limped to a seventh-placed finish in the league.

The Rooney factor

Moyes launched Wayne Rooney on his path to becoming England’s all-time record goalscorer, giving him his debut at Everton in 2002 at the age of just 16. Moyes sold the teenager to Manchester United two years later and they later fell out when the striker was sued by Moyes for allegations in an autobiography. They settled out of court and Rooney subsequently apologised.

Managerial woes

Moyes built up a formidable reputation during his long spell in charge of Everton but he looked a haunted man towards the end of his short tenure at Old Trafford. Since then his reputation has taken further hits with a short and unsuccessful spell in Spain with Real Sociedad and then and an ill-starred stint with Sunderland, who were relegated last season on his watch.

Keeping the faith

Moyes is a committed Christian but his beliefs once caused friction back in his playing days, at Cambridge United. “The three of them (Moyes and two team-mates) sat in the changing room with a little black book, discussing their faith, when they should have been getting psyched up for a relegation scrap,” recalled a far from impressed former team-mate, Roy McDonough. – Agence France-Presse