David Moyes’ return to Everton as manager was met with disappointment, as his side slumped to a 1-0 home defeat against Aston Villa on Wednesday, further plunging the club into relegation concerns. The match, which saw Ollie Watkins score the only goal early in the second half, leaves Everton languishing in 16th place, just one point above the relegation zone, while Villa moved up to seventh, only three points behind the Premier League’s top four.
Moyes, who managed Everton from 2002 to 2013, including a memorable fourth-place finish in 2005, returned to the club with the challenge of rescuing a team struggling for form. His first game back was anything but promising as Everton struggled to break down Villa’s defense and failed to score for the fifth time in their last six matches.
“I’ve got no illusions of the job I’ve to do. We couldn’t score a goal tonight again,” Moyes admitted after the match. “We’ve got to show an awful lot more quality on the ball.”
The game began with Villa taking control early on, creating several chances. Morgan Rogers’ shot was saved by Everton’s Jordan Pickford, and James Tarkowski had to clear a dangerous passback from Ashley Young to prevent a goal. Watkins missed a golden opportunity when he fired wide after a defensive mistake, but he made no such mistake just after the break. On 51 minutes, he pounced on a through ball from Rogers and calmly slotted it past Pickford to give Villa the lead.
Everton’s woes were compounded by the ongoing absence of Dominic Calvert-Lewin’s goal-scoring touch. The striker, once considered a potential backup to Harry Kane for England, has not found the back of the net since the two teams met in September. He came close with a shot in first-half stoppage time, but Boubacar Kamara cleared it off the line.
Moyes’ faith in Calvert-Lewin is central to his hopes of avoiding relegation, but the striker’s inability to finish chances left Everton with little to show for their efforts. Meanwhile, Villa, led by manager Unai Emery, were content to sit back after taking the lead, knowing that Everton lacked the tools to break them down.
Calvert-Lewin wasted another opportunity in stoppage time when he spooned a shot over the bar, and Villa held on for a crucial clean sheet — their first away from home in 12 matches. Emery reflected on the win, saying, “Away, we were in a bad spell and had to break it.”
For Moyes and Everton, the road ahead looks tough as they attempt to dig themselves out of relegation danger. With their struggles in front of goal and limited creativity, Moyes has a challenging task ahead to steer the club to safety before their much-anticipated move to a new 53,000-capacity stadium next season.
