A best XI of the Moyes era(s)

Last week, Everton’s official social media account posted on X, asking fans to share their best XIs from across David Moyes’ time in charge, which, of course, spans two stints at the helm.

This drew plenty of interest and many fans, including this one, began to have a think about which players would make the cut.

With the international break now over, and focus switching back to the Premier League and Everton’s push for Europe, then before we delve fully into previewing what is to come, I thought I’d have a go at naming the all-time Moyes, Everton XI.

Agree? Disagree? I’d love to know in the comments.

GK: JORDAN PICKFORD

Nigel Martyn was fantastic for Everton, playing a crucial role in the fourth-place finish in 2004-05, while Tim Howard was also a classic Moyes signing, coming in off the back of a tough stint at Manchester United to become a stalwart for the Toffees.

But Pickford has to get the nod here. He is arguably the best goalkeeper in the Premier League right now, and has probably made four or five save of the season contenders this term alone.

RB: SEAMUS COLEMAN

Cheating a tad here, as Coleman was not actually always used as first-choice right-back by Moyes until the 2012-13 campaign — the final season of the Scot’s first stint in charge.

But as a modern-day club great, there’s just no way I could leave Coleman out. The one thing missing from his career is a trophy, but there can hardly be blame attached to him for that.

CB: PHIL JAGIELKA

Signed from Sheffield United in 2007, having played predominantly as a midfielder for the Blades, went on to make almost 400 appearances for the Toffees across a 12-year stay at the club.

Jagielka cost just £4million; a classic bit of Moyes recruitment. He led by example and, at one point, was one of the Premier League’s best centre-backs.

CB: JOLEON LESCOTT

Back in the mid-2000s, it was much easier to pick up lesser-known talents from the second tier for reasonable fees than it is now.

Lescott was a long-term target for Moyes, but — if memory serves — there were concerns over his fitness. But the defender would go on to become an England international, and make Everton a tidy bit of profit when he left for Manchester City.

Sure, it ended on a sour note for Lescott, but he was a superb centre-back, and formed a great partnership with Jagielka. He was also a goal threat, scoring 10 times in the 2007-08 season.

LB: LEIGHTON BAINES

No reason to justify this one. Baines, like Coleman, is an Everton great. A sublime footballer who never got the widespread claim he deserved outside of the club.

Baines is the defender with the most goal involvements in Premier League history, with 85. He was a creative force, instrumental to so many of Everton’s best displays in the latter half of Moyes’ first tenure, and not to mention, as cool and collected as any footballer will ever be.

CDM: LEE CARSLEY

It was in the 2004-05 season that Carsley truly established himself as an integral cog in Moyes’ team. His crowning moment was the winner in the Merseyside derby in December of that season, as Everton charged towards a top-four finish.

Injury derailed his 2005-06 campaign, and his absence was felt as the Toffees failed to qualify for the Champions League proper, but he remained a key part of the team once he returned to fitness. You wouldn’t be shocked if he returned to Everton one day in a managerial capacity.

RM: MIKEL ARTETA

It wouldn’t be a Moyes team if at least one player wasn’t playing slightly out of position now, would it.

Arteta, though, did first establish himself wide in the midfield when he first signed in January 2005, before eventually moving centrally. Equally capable of creating from either role, he takes up a spot on the right in this XI.

CM: TIM CAHILL

With Carsley anchoring the midfield, Cahill takes up one of the more advanced central positions.

He cost just £2m from Millwall back in 2004, as Everton had to somehow replace a generational talent in Wayne Rooney, who had been sold to Manchester United.

Cahill went on to enjoy a spectacular eight years at Goodison Park, and he created an iconic Premier League celebration to boot. A shoo-in.

CM: MAROUANE FELLAINI

Next to Cahill, and hopefully getting on the end of plenty of crosses from Baines, Coleman and Arteta, is Fellaini, who signed from Standard Liege in a club record deal late on deadline day in 2008.

It took Fellaini time to get into his groove, but once he had been freed up from playing a solely defensive role to attack, he was a force to be reckoned with.

I’m still not sure I’ve seen chest control quite like it. On his day, Fellaini was a different beast.

LM: STEVEN PIENAAR

Another bit of excellent recruitment from Moyes’ first spell — picking up a player that had been unable to establish himself after a big move from Ajax to Borussia Dortmund, initially on loan.

Everton gave Pienaar a second chance, and the South African made sure to take it. Not exactly an assist machine or the most clinical finisher, Pienaar’s quality came from linking the play, playing the pass into the assister. And that’s without mentioning his mesmerising, telepathic partnership with Baines. A truly magnificent player.

ST: WAYNE ROONEY

Duncan Ferguson, Yakubu, Louis Saha… There have been some fine centre-forwards to play for Moyes’ Everton teams, even if they have perhaps not always been able to get the goals their quality warranted, whether due to tactics or fitness or a combination of both.

But I just couldn’t leave out Rooney, the once-in-a-generation talent that came through during Moyes’ first couple of years at the club.

If there are frustrations now over the lack of minutes for Tyler Dibling and Adam Aznou, then one can only imagine the ire there may have been in the fanbase, if social media were around, back in 2002-2004, when Moyes often held Rooney back as to not overexpose the teenager.

Yet even with the caveat that he didn’t make as many starts as he perhaps could or should have, his world class talent was evident throughout, and he just had to lead the line here.

//

Reader Comments (44)

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Eric Myles 2 Posted 07/04/2026 at 11:52:18

"Cheating a tad here, as Coleman was not actually always used as first-choice right-back by Moyes until the 2012-13 campaign — the final season of the Scot's first stint in charge."

Ah, the Coleman myth again.

You'll be shocked to find, Patric, that Coleman played more games in the 2010-11 season than he did in 2012-13.

John Collins 4 Posted 07/04/2026 at 12:12:30

Sadly.

Not a winners medal to be seen amongst all eleven.

Paul Hewitt 5 Posted 07/04/2026 at 12:12:35

I'd swap Tim Howard for Pickford.

And Lukaku for Rooney. He was here long enough to be in the team for me.

Ajay Gopal 6 Posted 07/04/2026 at 12:28:36

Yes, it has been a looooong break from football.

Eric Myles 7 Posted 07/04/2026 at 13:11:59

Les, Paul, the premise is a Moyes XI, not an all-time XI. Lukaku didn't play in a Moyes team.

John @4...

Lescott, Rooney, Fellaini, Carsley, Arteta, Cahill, Baines.

Patric Ridge 8 Posted 07/04/2026 at 13:12:39

Eric #2

It was mostly in regards to Coleman not being the fully fledged first-choice right-back in 2010-2012. Not that he didn't play plenty of games. But Hibbert was still quite a regular there too.

By the time Moyes was coming to an end in tenure one, it'd be fair to say Coleman was the first-choice right-back when fully fit, no?

Paul Hewitt 9 Posted 07/04/2026 at 13:24:40

Absolutely correct, Eric.

Silly me.

Eric Myles 10 Posted 07/04/2026 at 13:29:52

Patric, the good thing about Coleman was that he started out in midfield and, according to one manager, would play wherever he was asked and be good at it. Left back Man of the Match award against Tottenham in his first Premier League game comes to mind.

He also played more games than Hibbert in that 2010-11 season.

Eddie Ng 11 Posted 07/04/2026 at 13:50:36

Paul Hewitt #5,

I think Lukaku is one of Martinez's best XI, not Moyes's.

Ian Jones 12 Posted 07/04/2026 at 14:53:33

So, apart from Pickford, no player in the current Moyes squad gets in.

So, who can I add in? Nope, no one... to be fair, the current players probably need more time to prove themselves under Moyes to be worthy of inclusion. Ndiaye comes close...

John Collins 13 Posted 07/04/2026 at 15:21:32

Eric 7.

What about them?

Mark Murphy 14 Posted 07/04/2026 at 15:33:36

In my honest opinion, Iliman Ndiaye gets into any Everton team since the mid-80s.

Tony Abrahams 15 Posted 07/04/2026 at 15:38:31

I think Garner, Branthwaite, Pickford, and Ndiaye, would all have had a chance of being in Moyes's best eleven, but it would be interesting to pick the best 18 players who have ever played for Moyes, and debate if he could have rotated them and kept everyone happy.

Make the squad bigger, stronger, compete on all fronts and keep everyone happy instead of debating about the best players to play for a manager who has won absolutely zilch.

Paul Hewitt 17 Posted 07/04/2026 at 16:04:32

Mark @14.

Over Sheedy or Steven? Not having that, mate.

Les Callan 18 Posted 07/04/2026 at 16:11:00

You are missing the point Eric @ 7. My comment was meant to emphasise the acceptance of mediocrity over the past 30 / 40 years.

Mark Murphy 19 Posted 07/04/2026 at 17:59:57

PH - neither Sheedy nor Steven played for Moyes!Of course I wouldn't replace them, durrr!

I'd also have Stones ahead of Lescott. I'd even have Tarkowski and Yobo ahead of Lescott, tbh.

Paul Hewitt 20 Posted 07/04/2026 at 18:16:07

I know they didn't play for Moyes.

But you said from the mid-80s

Tony Abrahams 21 Posted 07/04/2026 at 20:20:08

I'd have assumed that Mark meant since the great team of the mid-eighties.

Otherwise, he would have surely said since we won the league in 1970?

Philip Devlin 22 Posted 07/04/2026 at 20:27:03

Tony, I'm pretty certain that 70,000 fans going nuts at Moyes waving a European trophy at them, on an open top bus, just 3 years ago, would disagree with your “absolutely zilch” comment.

Brian Foley 23 Posted 07/04/2026 at 21:01:07

Yeah, well, that's 5 minutes useless reading in the half-time of a terrific Sporting CP V Arsenal Champions League match.

Proper left back Araujo SCP even better than Mykolenko. 🤣

Si Cooper 24 Posted 07/04/2026 at 21:14:49

Eric, are you saying Seamus played more games at right-back than Tony Hibbert did in 2010-11 or just more games overall?

It has to be a debating point whether Moyes could have chosen Seamus as his first-choice right-back significantly earlier than he did.

A lot would depend on personal opinions on those who could have played in front of Seamus in 2011-12, and whether any limitations to the squad in that regard were the result of the manager deciding there was no need to bring someone in whilst he could rely on the Coleman - Hibbert partnership.

Tony Abrahams 25 Posted 07/04/2026 at 21:48:18

Wow Philip, it doesn't surprise me that you have written that.

I could have left it there and waited for your response but maybe you are better reading the headline of this thread again first, to save yourself the trouble of having to respond.

John Collins 26 Posted 07/04/2026 at 21:59:20

Hammers only a few of miles away from you, Phil.

Your second team?

Mark Murphy 27 Posted 07/04/2026 at 22:03:04

Paul,

Trevor Steven left for Rangers after the shite ban, late “mid-80s”

For clarity, I'm saying Ndiaye is the best winger we've had since Steven and Sheedy. I'm pretty sure everyone else got that but, as I said, for clarity.

Tony is right -- I'd have Davey Thomas in there if it was since the 70s. I loved Davey Thomas and Ndiaye reminds me so much of him.

Philip Devlin 28 Posted 07/04/2026 at 22:12:07

Just happy to keep reminding you and John about Moyes's recent European successes, Tony.

It seems to be causing you both a lot of confusion.

John Collins 29 Posted 07/04/2026 at 22:20:33

Read the headline on the top of the article, Philip.

John Collins 30 Posted 07/04/2026 at 22:30:50

Successes?

He won more than one?

John Collins 31 Posted 07/04/2026 at 22:43:13

Dave Thomas is still the best crosser of a ball off both feet i've seen in an Everton shirt, Mark.

Mark Murphy 32 Posted 07/04/2026 at 23:00:26

That cross, on the run, for Big Bob's hat-trick, was sublime, John.

Derek Thomas 33 Posted 07/04/2026 at 23:06:02

I agree with most... what about peak Yakubu or Jelavic? And how would you fit those two and Cahill in with the nailed-on Rooney of the players listed? Now we have to find a less cautious manager than Moyes to run the show.

In an attempt, based on pure devilment, I'll try to derail what is obviously your standard international break filler thread... [*Puts tongue firmly in cheek*]

All we need now is a better, less cautious, KITAP1 Manager than Dour Davey Moyes to run the show.

Mike Gaynes 34 Posted 07/04/2026 at 23:18:48

DT #33,

I'm just chuckling at how you'll react if what someone else just predicted on another thread comes true -- that if we make it into the Champions League, Moyes will certainly be named Premier League Manager of the Year.

John Collins 35 Posted 07/04/2026 at 23:25:53

Precision crossing while running at full pace, Mark.

Bob Latchford loved him, we used to never miss QPR away in them days. The amount of goals Dave provided for Bob in them games... 😁

Eric Myles 36 Posted 08/04/2026 at 02:19:27

Mark #19,

Stones technically didn't play for Moyes; he signed him but he didn't get on the pitch.

Conor McCourt 37 Posted 08/04/2026 at 03:11:18

I disagree with keeping Rooney in then leaving Branthwaite out. If the criteria is best players, then both have to be in. If it's who were the best eleven for Everton under Moyes's care, then both weren't there long enough to be included.

For me, Branthwaite is a different level to both Jagielka and Lescott but because he hasn't realised his full potential, hasn't been capped by England, and hasn't had a long enough Everton career, then the other two are more obvious.

I also think Ndiaye is better than Pienaar.

Derek Thomas 38 Posted 08/04/2026 at 04:30:51

Mike @ 34; If he can stop himself from reverting to (what used to be) type, gets us to 5th and / or C L - I'd vote for him myself!

But I still have the nagging feeling that does one 'Chelsea game swallow' make a summer?

We'll know better after Brentford & the rs.

Tony Abrahams 40 Posted 08/04/2026 at 09:03:27

There are none so blind as those who refuse to see comes to mind Philip.

Dave Abrahams 41 Posted 08/04/2026 at 10:21:33

If Moyes had been manager of Everton two years ago I think it would have saved the debate of whether Ndiaye would have got into Moyes best eleven because I doubt very much Moyes would have signed him—Too much of an individual player for Moyes.

I don’t think Catterick would have signed Alex Young for the same reason and no way would Duncan McKenzie have got here if Gordon Lee had been manager.

Tony Abrahams 43 Posted 08/04/2026 at 10:52:54

Cup of coffee I drink tea my dear😊

John Collins 44 Posted 08/04/2026 at 11:56:50

I'm an English man in New York😁