David Moyes’ return to Everton ended in disappointment as Ollie Watkins’ second-half strike secured Aston Villa a Premier League victory.
Moyes, taking charge of Everton after replacing the sacked Sean Dyche, found little cause for celebration nearly 12 years after leaving the club for Manchester United.
Everton contributed to their own defeat when Jarrad Branthwaite’s loose pass was intercepted by Morgan Rogers in the 51st minute. Rogers set up Watkins, who clinically slid the ball past England teammate Jordan Pickford.
Watkins had earlier missed a golden opportunity, misfiring after capitalizing on Ashley Young’s poor backpass.
Meanwhile, Everton’s Dominic Calvert-Lewin, struggling for form, failed to convert two chances—one narrowly missing the target and the other cleared off the line by Boubacar Kamara.
Villa’s Jacob Ramsey also squandered a clear chance, sending a shot wide from 10 yards just before halftime.
Everton’s hopes for an equalizer were dashed when a penalty appeal for a potential foul on Calvert-Lewin by Youri Tielemans was waved away.
The defeat leaves Moyes’ side precariously positioned, just one point and two places above the relegation zone.
New manager, same old problems
After 4,266 days since last managing an Everton home match—a 2-0 win over West Ham, the club he would later manage—David Moyes returned to the Goodison Park dugout, facing the daunting challenge ahead.
At 61, Moyes is currently the Premier League’s oldest manager and will need to draw on his extensive experience to keep Everton afloat this season. While Sean Dyche managed to secure survival twice, Moyes inherits a team that has won just three times this season and faces the monumental task of preserving the club’s unbroken Premier League tenure.
Everton’s struggles stem from their inability to score goals, netting only 15 times in 20 matches—a tally better only than bottom-placed Southampton’s 12. Moyes emphasized on Monday that Dominic Calvert-Lewin needs to rediscover his scoring form, but the forward has now gone 16 games without a goal, a drought dating back to September.
Calvert-Lewin had several opportunities to end his barren run but lacked sharpness. He flashed one chance wide after a promising run, while another opportunity in the box saw him hesitate and deliver a weak effort. His best chance came in added time when Jesper Lindstrom set him up eight yards from goal, but his first-time shot sailed over the crossbar, leaving Moyes and the Goodison Park faithful frustrated.
Aston Villa effectively managed the game after their goal, leaving Everton with just one win in their past 11 matches and failing to score in nine of those games—a stark indicator of the uphill battle Moyes faces.
Champions League race hots up
Everton v Aston Villa is the most frequently played fixture in English top-flight history and Unai Emery’s side maintained their recent hold over their opponents, stretching their unbeaten run against their hosts to 12 games.
Their form away from Villa Park has been wretched this season, but they were given a helping hand to end a sequence of five consecutive league defeats on their travels.
A welcome clean sheet was also their first shutout away from home this season, and needed a flying save from Emiliano Martinez to preserve it, thwarting Orel Mangala’s rising strike in stoppage time.
Rogers’ curling effort in the fifth minute was tipped round the post by Pickford, and when Kamara’s stinging strike was also pushed away Villa may have thought they would be leaving Merseyside frustrated.
But Watkins accepted a gift at the second time of asking, slotting in his ninth goal of the season to move Villa up to seventh in the table, three points adrift of Newcastle in fourth place.
Chelsea and champions Manchester City are sandwiched between, as the race to qualify for the Champions League hots up.