David Moyes deserved to get more respect from Everton fans

Moyes contributed a lot to Everton during his 11 years at the club

Manchester United boss David Moyes, whose team sit seventh in the Premier League, saw his team defeated 2-0 by his former club Everton which is currently managed by Roberto Martinez. Moyes, who was with Everton since 2002, managed the Merseyside club for the last time on 12^th May 2013 in a win against West Ham United.

After the game had ended Moyes, who had received a guard of honor when he entered the field, exited to a standing ovation from the supporters who valued the manager that had made them a force to be reckoned with in the Premier League. Everton chairman Bill Kenwright, who was the man who got Moyes to the Merseyside outfit from Preston North End, even cried as the team took a lap of honor with their manager. Moyes himself could barely hold back the tears as he bid farewell to the club he had managed for 11 long years.

However the Toffees’ attitude towards their former manager changed when he convinced his Everton backroom staff to join him at Manchester United and tried to prise away Leighton Baines and Marouane Fellaini for £28 million. The joint bid for the two players was widely criticized by the Everton management who thought the duo were worth much more. Moyes eventually managed to get Fellaini, who was considered Everton’s best player, for £27.5 million on deadline day. These incidents were enough to diminish the impression the supporters had of their former manager.

When Everton travelled to Old Trafford last December, Moyes was booed by Toffees fans as he took his place in the dugout and was bombarded with abuse by the visiting supporters. Chants like “David Moyes is full of s***” were heard constantly from the Everton supporters whose team won the match 1-0 courtesy of a Bryan Oviedo goal.

Moyes got a similar reception on his return to Goodison Park and was booed and abused by Everton supporters as he exited the Manchester United team bus. The 50-year-old even got heckled in the stadium when the home fans chanted “You’re getting sacked in the morning” after their team gained a lead over United.

While I agree that David Moyes made a mistake by bidding for Baines and Fellaini, it was wrong on the part of the Everton fans to treat him so shabbily. The Toffees owe a lot to David Moyes who dragged the relegation threatened side out of danger in 2002 and built a powerful side over the years. Roberto Martinez maybe a good manager but he should be grateful to David Moyes for leaving him a strong team. The 50-year-old gave much more to Everton than he took away.

Before they criticized Moyes they should have recalled the good moments they had under the Scot.

Remember Everton’s fourth place finish in 2004-05 which helped them qualify for the Champions League?, Or the times they finished above Liverpool in the Premier League?, Remember the brilliant signings David Moyes made in the form of players like Tim Howard, Louis Saha, Joleon Lescott, Mikel Arteta, Kevin Mirallas, Leighton Baines, Phil Jagielka and most importantly, Marouane Fellaini who were integral for Everton over the years?

Did they forget about the FA Cup semi-final victory over Manchester United back in 2009? Or the memorable 4-4 game against Manchester United in the 2011-2012 season? They should remember that Everton were very difficult to beat at home during David Moyes’ reign as manager. The Scot was the one who signed Ross Barkley and John Stones who are turning out to be brilliant players for the Toffees.

Everton are kicking on quite well without Marouane Fellaini so they should have let bygones be bygones and shown him some more respect.

I felt that the Everton fans treated the man who led them to 218 victories over 11 years quite shabbily.