Everton's new coach, David Moyes, expressed his regret for his players' performance in possession against Aston Villa, and stressed his desire to help out-of-form striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin score again.
Twelve years after leaving the club following his first 11-year spell at Goodison Park, Moyes oversaw his first match less than a week after his predecessor Sean Dyche was sacked by the visiting Villans. He won a controversial match with a score of 1-0.
“I have no illusions about the job I have to do,” Moyes told TNT Sports after the result kept the Toffees one point above the relegation zone as part of a run of one goal in six league games.
“I hate to say it, I don't think we were at our best this season.”
Morgan Rogers says Villa are back to their best after their first away win in five games 🙌
📺 @tntsports & @discoveryplusUK pic.twitter.com/Ma1SgwOLbq
— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) January 15, 2025
“We couldn't score a goal tonight again. We have to show a lot more quality on the ball and play better with the ball.
I was disappointed by this part tonight; I told the players that. “We didn't play well enough and keep the ball as we should have.”
Moyes on Calvert-Lewin
Moyes had challenged Calvert-Lewin to start scoring immediately on his first day at Everton's Finch Farm training complex, and the former England international had a good chance during the first half before volleying over the bar from close range during second-half extra time. .
The 27-year-old's contract expires at the end of the season, and he has played 16 matches since his last goal, scoring against Aston Villa on September 14.
“It's not so much about David Moyes tonight, it's so much about the players.”
An honest assessment from David Moyes about tonight's defeat and the expectations awaiting Everton 💬
📺 @tntsports & @discoveryplusUK pic.twitter.com/3ecYhFypSk
— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) January 15, 2025
“I asked Dom to see if he could get into scoring positions,” Moyes said. “He can show everyone that he is a really hard-working striker and can work even harder.
“He had a couple of chances tonight – he had one in the first half and was a bit unlucky, it was a really good effort. He missed a very big chance at the end, which was probably the big chance for him.”
Everton vs Tottenham
Moyes attributed Ollie Watkins' winning goal in the 51st minute to “a bit of a mistake and being out of position”, adding praise to Dyche.
Only humble Southampton They have won fewer matches and scored fewer goals in the Premier League this season than Everton, who host struggling Tottenham on Sunday (2pm GMT).
“Shaun achieved some great results at the beginning of the season, good draws when it was difficult to play against us,” Moyes said.
“(The players’) character always shined through when Sean was here. They tried (tonight) but they couldn’t get a result.”
