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
2004–05 Everton F.C. season David Moyes splashed the cash on the likes of Netherlands and Inter Milan winger Andy van der Meyde in a bid to keep Everton in a position to make a serious challenge for European qualification the following season. Despite their high league finish, Everton had the unwanted distinction of finishing with a negative goal difference, as a result of an embarrassing 7-0 humbling at Arsenal in the penultimate game of the season. ! colspan=14 style=background:#dcdcdc; text-align:center| Goalkeepers ! colspan=14 style=background:#dcdcdc; text-align:center| Defenders ! colspan=14 style=background:#dcdcdc; text-align:center| Midfielders ! colspan=14 style=background:#dcdcdc; text-align:center| Forwards ! colspan=14 style=background:#dcdcdc; text-align:center| Players transferred out during