Is David Moyes' New Contract a Mistake?

On the 14th March, 2002, Everton Football Club announced their new manager. It was the relatively inexperienced former Preston centre-back David Moyes.

At the time, Everton were a team who were often struggling to stay in the Premier League, and it seemed just a matter of time before they actually fell into the Championship.

After Moyes was appointed, however, things started to improve rather drastically. In his first full season in charge of the Merseyside club, he had them pushing for Europe, and only defeat to Manchester United on the final day prevented them from claiming a UEFA Cup slot.

Moyes was awarded the LMA Manager of the Year Award, ahead of the likes of Arsene Wenger and Sir Alex Ferguson.

The next season, however, showed the inconsistency that had plagued Everton in the years before David Moyes' appointment as they only finished 17th, narrowly avoiding relegation.

Were Everton back on their way down? Well, the following season answered that question comprehensively. They pipped great rivals Liverpool to fourth place, in the process claiming a Champions League place.

Once more, Moyes was named LMA Manager of the Year.

The following seasons saw Everton finish 11th, 6th, and 5th.

David Moyes had secured consecutive top six finish for Everton for the first time in their Premier League history.

But a shaky start to this season has seen speculation over his future. That was until he signed a new five-year contract a few days ago. But is that a good thing for the club?

There is no doubt that Moyes has been a great manager for the club, one of the best in recent times, but has he taken them as far as he can?

Well, unless Everton get a new buyer so they can compete financially, I really can't see them improving on the fourth place finish they achieved in 2005. But that relies on forces higher up than Moyes.

Overall, I think the new contract is very good news for Everton. He may have had a bad start this season, but you don't win two LMA Manager of the Year Awards managing an average team without being a really good manager.

If Everton do get an investment, Moyes is good enough to take them into the top four. If they don't get an investment, Moyes has already shown that he is good enough to challenge that top four.