From dullness to roaring – How did Moyes revive Everton?

No Premier League team had more draws than Everton last season. In recent years, Goodison Park Stadium has become a fortress of the war of attrition, where survival is more important than ornamentality. The four consecutive years of fighting for relegation have made fans lose hope, and "boring" has become a label that Everton is difficult to remove. However, things have changed after moving into the new £800 million stadium. The 2:0 victory over Brighton not only marked a new chapter in Everton's new home court, but also made them feel like they were a team. Gralish, who joined from Manchester City on loan in the summer, joined forces with Ndiaye, who joined last year, to score the team's first goal in the new season. The team played freely and passionately, and for the first time in years, fans left the court with real hope for the new season. The newly ignited optimism among Everton fans was strengthened in the next game, a goal battle with five goals. In the end, the Toffees defeated the Wolves, who played at home 3-2 at Molyneux Stadium, and ranked among the top five in the Premier League rankings.

At this time last year, Everton was at the bottom of the Premier League, and they suffered a series of losses in the first four rounds of the league - their worst start in 66 years. They once led Bournemouth and Aston Villa two goals, but they were beaten by their opponents in both games, with the final result being 2:3. This exposed that under the coaching of Sean Dyche, Everton's pragmatic style of play is already in danger. As long as they take the lead, they will retreat and rely on set pieces and long passes to occasionally harass the opponent's defense, which puts them under tremendous defensive pressure and ultimately shakes the team's determination.

They struggled to score goals, scoring only 15 goals in the first 19 league games, ranking second to last in the Premier League. Their expected goals were 18.33, with an average of 0.79 goals per game, the lowest offensive efficiency of the club in 13 seasons. They shot 63 times in the first half of the season, and only Southampton, who is at the bottom, has fewer than them.

This is not a unique flaw last season. Everton has often ranked last in the league goal list in recent years, ranking 17th, 19th, 19th and 13th in the past four seasons. In comparison, their performance on the defensive end is more reliable, ranking 6th, 2nd, 12th and 12th in the past four years respectively. But their style is cautious and conservative, which is reflected in possession: their possession has ranked 19th, 18th, 17th and 19th in the league in the past four seasons. Their defense line is stable enough, but the offense seems dull and weak, and their games always make fans sleepy.

When the team lost eight games in ten consecutive games, Everton's new owner, Friedkin Group, finally couldn't bear it anymore and fired Sean Dyche in January this year. The challenge for the team is to find a suitable head coach and lead the team out of the cycle of relying on dull playing styles to survive and start a new era at Hill Dickinson Stadium. Thomas Frank, known for his tight organization, high-pressure pressing and smooth style, and Porter, who advocates ball-handling tactics, are considered the team's answer.

End, Everton made a seemingly secure choice-their predecessor, David Moyes. His style is known for his solid defense, structured pressing and organization. His appointment has raised doubts, with fans worried that Everton would pursue a conservative, pragmatic, rather than aggressive style.

But Moyes slapped the opponent in the face. Under his leadership in the second half of last season, Everton's average goal score increased from 0.79 to 1.42, almost doubled; the expected number of goals scored also increased from 0.96 to 1.35. The number of positive shots per game increased from 3.3 to 4; the number of excellent chances per game increased from 1.8 to 2.6; the shooting conversion rate increased from 6.9% to 13.8%, jumping from the second-last Premier League to the level of the top team.

This progress continues to the new season. Everton ranks seventh in creating major opportunities, fourth in the number of goals per game, eighth in the number of expected goals, second in the number of shot conversion rates, and fourth in the number of expected goals per shot. Everton is still disciplined without the ball, but the real highlight is that they become more dangerous on the offense, they keep creating quality opportunities, and, they are able to translate those opportunities into goals.

Shawn Dyche relies on long passes, counterattacks, physical advantages and crosses in the penalty area forever. Moyes is making the most of creative players and bringing more goals and quality opportunities to the team. Taylor Diblin, Glalish and Kiernan Desbury-Hall joined in the summer, and Moyes allowed them to take more risks and demonstrate their offensive talent.

Last season, we saw some clues from his use of Ndiaye. The Senegal international is good at cutting inward and affecting the game in the middle, so Moyes encourages him to cut from the wing instead of staying on the wing. Vitali Mikorenko was given the freedom to advance along the wing and use the space to attack. This freedom paid off, and Ndiaye performed well in the second half of the season, scoring nine goals at the end of the season, and completing 2.5 successful passes per 90 minutes on average. Everton is no longer afraid to put in the frontcourt, and they are starting to place core players in positions that can play a role.

This concept has begun to show results this season. With just two starts, Galish sent four assists, making him the second most assists Everton has since last season. Unlike having ball possession as the top priority at Manchester City, Gallish was free to pull back, possess the ball at Everton and play smooth football with Desbury Hall. This is very obvious in the data: against Wolves, he completed the most dribbling (5 times), tried 9 passes, and also touched the ball the most in the opponent's penalty area, making direct contributions to all three goals of the team. Against Brighton, he ranked first among all players in the offensive zone three (31) and second in the penalty area, trying 8 passes and contributing two assists.

Just look at Everton's second goal against Wolves to see its influence. The four players teamed up to complete this cooperation, each of whom easily sent the ball into the opponent's goal after less than three touches. This smooth and one-foot-out coordination method has not been seen by Everton fans for many years.

Meanwhile, Moyes retains the iconic characteristics of his previous coaching team: strict defensive discipline and compact formation. Although his team still ranks last in the league in possession, their defensive efficiency is still at the forefront. Last season, their expected goals conceded ranked fourth in the league and fifth in the league in terms of goals conceded per game. If Moyes can balance its iconic robustness with a more modern, more direct, and more adventurous style of play, Everton will be a strong team this season. And it’s equally important for fans that they can also see the most spectacular game. For the first time over the years, home fans’ cheers have been no longer due to the release of anxiety at the end of the game, but rather from the sincere excitement for the upcoming game.