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
Séamus Coleman and Everton manager David Moyes, Coleman was signed by the Merseyside club for £60,000 in January 2009, ahead of other interest from Ipswich Town, Birmingham City and Celtic. Before playing a game for Everton, Coleman had to undergo surgery on a career-threatening infected blister. He made his debut on 22 October 2009 in the Europa League group stage in a 5–0 loss to Benfica at the Estádio da Luz, being beaten to the ball by Javier Saviola for the first goal. Three days later in his Goodison Park debut, a Premier League match against Tottenham Hotspur, Coleman was named Man