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
2010–11 Everton F.C. season their season on 14 August at Ewood Park, falling 1–0 to Blackburn Rovers. In the fourteenth minute, goalkeeper Tim Howard mishandled the ball, dropping it at the feet of Nikola Kalinić, who put the ball in the net. Following the game, manager David Moyes came to the defence of Howard, saying that the team's lack of attacking pressure from the forwards and midfielders were equally to blame for the loss. Everton's second match saw the club earn their first point of the season in a 1–1 draw with Wolverhampton Wanderers at Goodison Park. Everton controlled possession and had more chances