Do Everton deserve better from David Moyes?

da prosport bet： David Moyes hasn’t made too many friends since becoming Manchester United boss.

da apostaganha： The successor to Sir Alex Ferguson cheesed off Wayne Rooney earlier in the summer with comments regarding the England forward’s limited importance at Old Trafford, he turned on the Premier League’s fixture organisers last week by implying United’s tough start to the campaign could only have been a construct of design, and yesterday he burned bridges with his former employers Everton, after Toffees chief Bill Kenwright judged the Scot’s dual £28million bid for Leighton Baines and Marouane Fellaini as ‘insulting and derisory’.

The former Goodison man didn’t join the Premier League champions to make amicable acquaintances or maintain old relationships, but does Moyes owe Everton a greater degree of respect in the form of a more competitive offer, considering his eleven year spell on Merseyside was the path that led him to the Old Trafford throne?

Despite Everton’s dismay at a bid which was quite clearly below the mark for their two most prolific players, when the offer is broken down, at least part of it is understandable. The bid can be separated into two segments – £12million for Baines and £16million for Fellaini – and the Englishman’s proposed fee makes perfect transfer sense, even if the Toffees management disagree.

Had the deal gone through, it would have made the Everton defender the most expensive English left-back of all time, exceeding Wayne Bridge’s 2009 move to Manchester City by £500k. Granted, Baines is one of the most talented full-backs the Three Lions has had to offer over the past decade, despite slipping under the radar at Goodison for much of his career, but at 28 years of age, the Red Devils are unlikely to further exceed the English left-back benchmark for a player who only has three or four seasons left before he enters into the tail-end of his career.

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Similarly, Patrice Evra may not be the elite defender he used to be, but the Frenchman is one of the most experienced full-backs in European football, and after a lukewarm start to last season finished up with four goals in 34 appearances. By all means, Baines would be a strong addition to the Red Devils roster, but United won’t be lost without him this season with Evra, along with understudy Alexander Buttner, more than capable of providing adequate quality in the No.3 slot. Most importantly, David Moyes will be desperate not to overspend in his inaugural transfer window, and despite his obvious adoration for the Everton defender, won’t be willing to pay full price for what will essentially be a superficial improvement at Old Trafford.

But that’s not how Everton see it, and it’s unsurprising that they’ve issued such a condemning declaration. To the Toffees, Baines’ significance is virtually irreplaceable. The defender recorded five goals and five assists from the back last term, whilst his efforts bombing forward anointed Baines as the Premier League’s most creative individual, having conjured up 116 goal scoring chances last season – 12 more than any other top flight player, and a total only rivaled by a select few throughout Europe. If Bill Kenwright is going to let one of the Premier League’s most effective single entities leave for another English club, he expects a premium rate in return.

The Fellaini deal is a tad more perplexing. Until the end of July, the big Belgian was available for £23million due to a clause in his contract, but upon the stipulation’s expiration, Moyes has now tabled a bid significantly lower than Everton’s public valuation. This is the part where the ‘insulting and derisory’ description really kicks in. The Toffees purchased Fellaini for £15million from Standard Liege six years ago, so why would Everton accept or even consider a bid that provides just a £1million return on their original investment, not to mention the fact the midfielder’s value has increased significantly since 2008, with six seasons’ worth of Premier League experience now under his belt.

Furthermore, aged just 25, the 6 foot 5 Fellaini really has the world at his feet. His new role at the tip of Everton’s midfield last season displayed a whole new side to the Belgium international’s game that he was previously not credited for, with 11 goals and five assists in 31 appearances, whilst his defensive capabilities have always been well known. After Fellaini’s stellar attacking campaign, he’s now one of the most versatile midfielders the Premier League has to offer, and with a clear natural progression throughout his six year stay in England, it appears the possibilities are endless for the Everton talisman.

But nobody has a greater inside knowledge of Goodison Park than David Moyes, and as many Everton followers suggested at the end of last season, the Manchester United gaffer is well aware that Fellaini is being window-shopped to other Premier League clubs. The Belgium international is certainly an impressive talent, but a combination of his potential value and questionable attitude –his ill-disciplined display against Stoke last season that saw him handed a retrospective three match ban comes to mind – means that the Toffees would rather take the money for the lanky midfielder, which in turn can be utilised by Roberto Martinez to instigate his philosophical revolution on Merseyside by bringing in new recruits of his own choosing.

Similarly, there is a level of hypocrisy behind Everton’s ‘insulting and derisory’ declaration. Martinez’ first port of call as Everton boss was to source an adequate striker after Nikitia Jelavic and Victor Anichebe mustered up just 13 goals between them last season. And immediately, the Spaniard turned to former club Wigan, who he had left just weeks previously, to sign forward Arouna Kone for a miserly £5million, despite the Ivorian international being the Latics’ top scorer last term. Martinez didn’t stop there either, he also sourced defender Antolin Alcaraz from his former employers on a free transfer.

So what was David Moyes to do? Should he have dislodged his entire inside knowledge of the Everton roster and the Toffees boardroom from his memory and start off proceedings with a £40million bid? Should he have donated an extra £10million from his own transfer kitty to his former club to say thanks for decade they spent together, regardless of the fact that his role and performance as manager outweighed the importance of any particular player, still at the club or otherwise, in turning Everton from a relegation outfit to regular European contenders?

Should he had not used any slightest advantage possible to make his new post at Manchester United, historically and traditionally the most difficult job in England, a little bit easier, amid a summer that has already been filled with vast disappointment for the Scot? Should he not have used to his benefit the fact Everton are in no financial position to haggle on prices, just as every other Premier League manager did throughout his own Goodison tenure?

It’s the same approach Roberto Martinez has taken in the transfer market this summer, having already sourced two players on the cheap from his beloved Wigan, and there’s little room for past allegiances at a club of Manchester United’s stature.

Despite my justifications however, there’s little getting away from the fact that £28million is an unfair price for the nucleus of a top six Premier League outfit, especially considering some of the deals that have already gone ahead this summer. By Moyes’ reckoning, Baines and Fellaini combined are worth £7million less than Gonzalo Higuain, £2million less than Fernandinho and equate to under a third of Gareth Bale.

But the Scot is well aware that Bill Kenwright would quite rightly refuse his first offer for the duo, and the £28million bid was at best an attempt to ruffle a few feathers in the Goodison dressing room by convincing Baines and Fellaini to push for a transfer at the Everton end. It was a cold, calculated and cynical move on Moyes’ part, that may well affect his personal relationship with the Toffees chairman. But like I said, you don’t become Manchester United boss for the sake of pleasantries.