OK first the negatives: The football can at times be a bit limited, the ability to compete hampered by lack of funds.
Here's two solutions: For the latter a better financial planning strategy from the club. For the former we turn to the playing squad & coaching staff. There are several problems - clearly the so-called big clubs have a major advantage in playing personnel so this is how I would want it to be turned around. On the plus side Moyes gets some great results against some of the big clubs (some of the time) - he gets that from motivating the team to take the 'oil rich' clubs on - no coincidence surely that we've got 8 wins in 10 against City & only one loss in about 5 years against Chelsea (3 home wins on the bounce against both - surely something no other club has come near). It's a bit different against Arsenal (although we've been a bit unlucky at times), Man U (away at any rate - home results have been good), Liverpool (not helped by some 'curious' refereeing that's for sure), Spurs (have won at their ground & finally at home after a long wait).
Nevertheless we need a better game plan against the rest. Whilst it tends to be ok-ish it can also be moderate at times & the football sterile. I'd rate him about 7/10 on this - 10 years at the right end of the table is pretty good (bar one season end).
Moving on to another opportunity missed: Moyes has a good enough reputation & has built a decent enough squad to attract some reasonable, further talent to Everton (such as Donovan) & unearth excellent bargains (Cahill, Arteta). Thank heavens for that. Naturally he makes mistakes (like everyone else) too - mostly on the forward front (Beattie, Yakubu (?), Johnson (?), Saha in the latter time he was at the club.) etc & some of this lies with the tactical approach. but also, more obviously, Van der Meyde, Kroldrup, Billy.
One opportunity he needs to grasp is to consider whether it is prudent to sell some players whose fitness is questionable. You might think therefore that Jack Rodwell, good though he probably is, is a bit of a liability in this respect - & Cahill seems to have gone that way too now - forcing old legs to get on the pitch in the hope of getting a goal or two. The Yak certainly was (post injury) & he should have got rid, maybe also Arteta a couple of seasons ago but he's fiercely loyal (not altogether a bad thing). Anichebe perhaps another case - though there are signs of improvement lately in terms of goals if not the fitness necessarily. So I'm suggesting he could learn that his loyalty to his players has a price. Whether any replacement manager would enjoy the same level of respect with the current squad is questionable. Whether a new manager could persuade others to join us is a moot point.
Additionally he needs to figure out what it is that manages to motivate Everton from average to good - our pre-Xmas form is average (equal wins to losses both home & away since 2005-6) whereas the post Xmas form is excellent (43 wins to 8 losses at home, remaining average away)
Pre Xmas form 05-06 to 11-12 (position in league is average points per game) 16, 8, 6, 7, 12, 15, 9 (average 10.4 or 10th)
Post Xmas form 05-06 to 11-12 - 8,7, 5, 5, 3, 7, 9 (average 6.3 or 6th)
Improvement +8, +1, +1, +2, +9, +8, = (4 places)
