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
History of Everton F.C. season-long loans. Everton began the season well, with only one defeat in the opening 18 games, fewest in all four English divisions, and a record bettered only by Bayern Munich and Roma across Europe's top leagues. On 4 December 2013, Everton beat champions Manchester United, now managed by David Moyes, 0–1 at Old Trafford, their first win at the Manchester club's ground for 21 years. At Christmas, the club sat in fifth place in the league, only two points from the top and very much in the thick of what promised to be the most closely fought Premier League title