Everton boss David Moyes will be delighted with his side for their solid start to the season – and historical figures have shown that it could well be a season to remember.
Everton beat Manchester United 1-0 on Monday night in the Premier League to leave them just a goal behind the Red Devils in the table.
The Toffees are just three points off the Champions League spots, and a renewed run of form up until Christmas could see them in the hunt for Europe’s flagship competition come the end of the season.
David Moyes was the last manager to drag them to the top four, and he could do that yet again at the Hill Dickinson Stadium after some emerging historical data suggested it wasn’t out of the question.
Historical Everton data shows that a top-half place is certainly in question
A table created by Opta’s Aaron Barton on X (formerly Twitter) shows that, with Everton recording 18 points after 12 games this season, it’s their joint-10th best start to life in the Premier League.
And, of the nine better showings that they’ve recorded in previous seasons, only once have the Toffees gone on to finish outside of the top half.
That was in 1996-97. A decent run of form up until Christmas Day saw Everton in seventh at the festive period, losing just once away from home – though from there, the Toffees immediately went on a six-game losing run and won just three further games to finish 15th, two points clear of safety under Joe Royle.
Everton may need to qualify for Europe to keep some of their top players next year!
Interestingly, of the nine starts where Everton have fared better, Moyes has been in charge for four of them. The best one was the 23 points mustered in the 2004-05 campaign where Everton eventually finished fourth, whilst it’s their best start since the 2020-21 campaign under Carlo Ancelotti before he left for Real Madrid.
By contrast, Everton’s worst start was the 1994-95 campaign, picking up just four points in 12 games – meaning Everton were bottom of the table as late as mid-January. But a resurgent run of form to end the campaign ensured safety by five points.
Everton should now begin to start challenging for Europe
It’s clear that David Moyes is taking Everton in the right direction.
The Toffees’ three previous campaigns saw them take 11, 14 and 13 points respectively, and so the increased points tally is an improvement.
Where will Everton finish this season?
However, the next step is European football. Everton haven’t featured in European football for eight years, but with a brand new stadium set to host Euro 2028, the club have become a more attractive proposition.
If they can find a place on the continent and continuously develop from there, those league finishes could become more frequent and we could witness some genuine stars turning out on Merseyside.
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