David Moyes, Everton and Identity - Why it Matters | OneFootball

In an interview with Everton’s official club channels, published earlier this week, Jarrad Branthwaite said: “I think that Everton identity is something the manager – David Moyes – has really brought back to the club.

“He’s been brilliant with me and not only me, the rest of the dressing room as well. He knows what this club means to people, he knows what it takes to be successful and he gives us confidence to go out there and play.”

When news broke last week that Everton were preparing to offer Moyes a new deal, there was plenty of division within the fanbase. For some reason, there always is when it comes to Moyes.

Yes, he can be frustrating — there are areas in which Moyes will probably, forever, frustrate. He will always tend to trust older players over younger ones, at least at first, and new signings, unless they already come with that Premier League experience and proven quality (for example, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and Jack Grealish), have to earn his trust. At times, it feels like that process takes far too long.

So, when you throw in that the new signings Everton have brought in across recent windows have predominantly been younger players, then it is probably fair to ask some questions.

Yet in every other aspect, Moyes has elevated the club, and — as Branthwaite lays out — the players are buying in.

This isn’t a piece about whether Everton should offer Moyes a new deal or not.

But it is a piece about why that Everton identity, which Moyes knows how to tap into, matters so much.

It is the kind of identity that, when it all clicks, has the fans and team working in unison; it’s the kind of identity that results in games like the Chelsea one, when everything came together.

Moyes’ Everton identity has also seen the Toffees pick up 77 points since he returned to the club.

In that time, only five Premier League teams have accumulated more points: Chelsea (81), Liverpool (87), Aston Villa (88), Manchester City (98) and Arsenal (104).

At times this season, the intensity that Evertonians demand has been absent, and for this writer, that’s probably the only real disappointment.

I cannot bring myself to get angry about youngsters like Adam Aznou and Tyler Dibling, who need to be patient and we need to be patient with, not getting regular starts, even if I would like them to get more regular minutes, when others in their positions are performing well.

But during a winter of discontent at Hill Dickinson Stadium, it’s fair to say the intensity wasn’t quite there. But as of late, ever since that Manchester United game towards the end of February, it has been back.

Heading into the final seven games of the season, Everton are well placed to push for European qualification. Will they get there? We’ll see, but stepping back and looking for some perspective, Everton have gone from a team scrapping to keep their heads above water to a club whose players are openly speaking about getting the Toffees back to the top table.

And it is why, whether Moyes gets a new deal or not, it is vital Everton sign players who understand the club, who understand its identity.

Grealish does. Dewsbury-Hall does. Iliman Ndiaye was an instant hit last season not only for his abundance of skill, but his tireless workrate.

And look at how players like James Garner, Beto, Tim Iroegbunam and even Michael Keane have improved under Moyes.

It should serve as a lesson for the likes of Thierno Barry (who has had his ups and downs), Dibling and Aznou.

The latter two have not had the opportunities they would have liked, but they are both 20 or under. Dibling has handled it privately, whereas Aznou has shown some immaturity by acting out on social media.

Part of the identity Moyes has built, and that Everton need, is unity, and it needs everyone pulling in the right direction to succeed.

That identity, more than Moyes himself, is what can really take Everton forward into a bright future.

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