David Moyes rise to £6 million. All of this gave Everton and its fans cause for optimism as a string of strong performances broke the pattern inconsistency which saw league finishes of 15th, 7th, 17th, 4th and 11th under Moyes. His reputation as a disciplinarian could be seen to manifest in Everton's yellow card count. They received just 27 yellow cards all season – the lowest in the league and six fewer than their nearest rival Liverpool. Moyes recruited Steve Round as his assistant manager for the 2008–09 season to replace Alan Irvine, who had taken over as Preston North End manager
David Moyes agreed to pay for damages. Moyes donated the undisclosed damages from the suit to the Everton Former Players' Foundation. During the 2004–05 season, Everton went on to surpass all expectations by finishing fourth in the league and securing a place in the following season's UEFA Champions League third qualification round, Moyes again being awarded the LMA Manager of the Year award. Moyes then broke Everton's transfer record to bring in striker James Beattie in January and, as influential midfielder Thomas Gravesen left, Mikel Arteta came in on loan. At the beginning of the 2005–06 season, Everton struggled again and were