The return of David Moyes has probably split the fanbase a little bit, but I can see why The Friedkin Group has chosen him. He probably ticks more boxes than anybody else who is available right now.

He knows the club inside out and when it comes to which managers understand Everton Football Club, the fanbase, the Premier League and how we want Goodison Park again, he’s ahead of everyone else. I think it will suit the players as well, with the style that they’ve been playing under Sean Dyche, it won’t be a dramatic change or starting from scratch where they’ve got to get used to a whole new system and need time bedding in.

There are going to be tweaks and things that Moyes will want that Dyche wasn’t doing but I don’t think it’s going to be a case of the players having to start again and that will help them try to improve slowly but surely.

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There have been question marks over the length of the deal, because everyone was probably wanting to wait until the summer to restart afresh. However, I think it was obvious that Dyche’s time had to come to an end and a change had to happen.

All the statistics from when he first came here were declining from last season to this season and we couldn’t see the light at the end of the tunnel. We understand how much he had done, especially last season with the points deduction when he couldn’t have handled himself any better as he was very calm about that and didn’t make any excuses.

It was a case of a ‘let’s roll our sleeves up and it’s us against the world,’ attitude and I think he was the right man for that but both before and after that we’ve been lucky that Jordan Pickford has been on top form and his saves have kept us in the Premier League. The first half of this season just ran away from us, from a poor pre-season to a poor start to the season, we just didn’t get going and a change was needed.

Now it’s up to Moyes to try and fix that. It’s going to be difficult and it’s not going to change overnight but what we want and what we’ve been craving as Everton fans for the last season at Goodison Park is to get that place rocking.

We were all hoping that this season was going to enable us to enjoy every moment we had left with the Grand Old Lady and embrace the occasion and we haven’t been able to do that. Moyes knows the Everton fans and knows how to play a certain style to get Goodison rocking.

He’s already asked for us to get behind the team and be a unit. We know what this football club is like when we’re all together and united.

Opponents don’t want to play there. People coming here get scared and anxious on the ball and we can force mistakes from the opposition.

That’s what we’ve wanted to see from the start, but we haven’t achieved that a lot under Dyche. He failed to get the best out of Goodison.

We’ve got two difficult games straight away but that’s also brilliant. What a fantastic challenge playing against Aston Villa and Tottenham Hotspur.

They’re great footballing sides but it’s an opportunity for us to show a bit of belief. Everton Football Club should be getting points, whoever they are up against, at Goodison Park. Hopefully with bringing Moyes back, that’s going to be our starting point.

I feel like we still need to bring new players in, but can Moyes improve what he’s already got? A lot of people were talking about a short-term deal for him, but I don’t think that would have helped these type of players that we’ve currently got in the group.

If Moyes comes down with a hammer and starts pushing a few players, they could switch off if they think he’s not going to be here in six months’ time. While that’s the wrong mentality, unfortunately some modern day footballers think like that if things don’t go their way but we can’t afford that and we need them to be hungry and competitive to keep the shirt.

I think the way Moyes goes about his professional business, he will give them all an opportunity but it’s all down to hard work and determination to show you’ve got the grit and ability to put that royal blue jersey on. You’ve got to be prepared to work hard for Moyes and that’s what we need and the type of character we want at this football club.

Some might have wanted some fantastic foreign name but I think that could have been a bigger gamble with where this team realistically is right now. I’m pleased Moyes is back and I’m pleased that The Friedkin Group made a decision quickly and didn’t let two or three games go by with an interim manager and a shortlist like we’ve seen under Farhad Moshiri.

A decision has been made, a new face has come in, and now the hard work starts trying to get us winning games and climbing up the league table. Moyes knows what he needs to do, he needs to win football matches, it’s as simple as that.

We’d like to see a bit more finesse and to see the team a bit more on the front foot, especially at Goodison, but how he does it, we don’t really care. I know there was a bit of a cloud over his head with Evertonians in how he left to join Manchester United back in 2013 but if he puts points on the table, I’m sure that will easily be forgotten.

I loved seeing Leighton and Seamus in charge but it also made me jealous

We were told the line-up for the FA Cup game against Peterborough United was picked by Sean Dyche and I thought it was very strange that it was a back five with five genuine defenders at home to a League One side when we want to be on the front foot and get the crowd going. I was loving seeing Leighton Baines and Seamus Coleman on the touchline but must admit I was jealous too.

It’s one of those things you dream of as a kid. You want to play for the club and I’ve done that, but seeing a couple of Everton full-backs like myself on the sidelines, it just looked great. I was really pleased for Leighton as the way he left the football club as a player, retiring during lockdown, he didn’t get the send off that he truly deserved so the opportunity to lead out an Everton side at a packed Goodison Park is a fantastic experience.

It was difficult for the players and it wasn’t the best game, but it was understandable given the situation with what had happened a few hours before. Ultimately, we showed our class in the end, and it was good to see Nathan Patterson getting up and down the line, which is not something we usually see from our full-backs, Harrison Armstrong doing well plus Beto getting his goal and causing a few issues.

The players’ heads were probably in the clouds a bit with everything that had gone on, but it was job done and now there’s now a tougher looking fixture against Bournemouth to look forward to in the next round. Now we have to focus on our Premier League form that has got to be turned around.

Future Toffee Lady arrives!

I apologise if this news makes my readers feel old, but I’m delighted to announce the birth of my first grandchild! Aurelia Sofia Lynch was born on January 8, 2025, and weighed in at 6lb 70z.

Congratulations to my daughter Aleisha and Nathan. Maybe a future Toffee Lady or star of the Women’s Super League?