When Farhad Moshiri took over at Everton, he stated that he did not want the team to become into “a museum” as part of his ambitious strategy for dominance.
The big old stage of Goodison Park has become more like a tomb as Moshiri finally takes a leave of absence following nearly nine years of upheaval, dysfunction, dissatisfaction, and massive financial waste.
When Moshiri purchased a 49.6% stake in Everton in February 2016, and was praised as “the perfect partner” by then-chairman Bill Kenwright, his envisioned route to greatness was paved with good intentions.
Fan ire, managerial turnover, relegation struggles, boardroom collapses, Premier League point deductions, and a financial crisis that nearly drove Everton to the edge have instead eclipsed the few glimmering moments.
Moshiri spent over £750 million on his goal, but as Everton declined, he received little to no financial return.
How will the British-Iranian businessman’s era be remembered, and what, if anything, will be his legacy as American billionaire Dan Friedkin assumes leadership after acquiring Moshiri’s now 94.1% stake?
Moshiri’s chaos in management
During David Moyes’ 11-year tenure from 2002 to 2013, Everton was seen as an example of stability.
But Moshiri replaced this calm with a fast-paced, revolving-door strategy that saw him install seven full-time players, the first six of whom had an average of just 309 days between their first and last games before incumbent Sean Dyche.
Soon after purchasing Everton, which he financed by selling his 15% stake in Arsenal to business buddy Alisher Usmanov for £200 million, Moshiri made his ambitions known and established the tone for his term.
Within 72 days of Moshiri’s arrival, the manager he inherited, Roberto Martinez, was fired. Then, an offer reportedly worth £6 million per year enticed Ronald Koeman away from Southampton.
Steve Walsh, who is recognized as one of the main contributors to Leicester City’s incredible Premier League title victory in 2016, joined Koeman.
While serving as the Foxes’ assistant manager, Walsh—Everton’s first director of football—was credited with bringing in players like Riyad Mahrez and N’Golo Kante.
It was Walsh’s first football director position. It was Moshiri’s initial error.
It never felt like a good fit to have this forced marriage of convenience in sports. Although they put on a united face, rumors of “Koeman signings” and “Walsh signings” circulated behind the scenes. Never a good indication.
Confusion was undoubtedly implied by Everton’s transfer plan.
In his debut season, Koeman led Everton to Europe. However, the troubles really began when Moshiri tried to push his financial weight around in the summer of 2017 for a team that had managed to survive on meager funds under Moyes.
Since joining for £30 million from Sunderland that summer, Jordan Pickford has been a huge success. However, elsewhere, a scattergun approach was seriously wrong; the failure to properly replace striker Romelu Lukaku after his £90 million move to Manchester United was a crucial mistake.
Everton’s simultaneous acquisition of three players for the number 10 position revealed it. Ajax captain Davy Klaassen was out of his depth following his £23.6 million arrival, Wayne Rooney returned from Manchester United, and Moshiri resolved a transfer standoff with Swansea by paying a club record £45 million for Gylfi Sigurdsson.
After a string of disappointing performances under interim manager David Unsworth, Moshiri moved to Sam Allardyce when Koeman left in October with Everton 18th. This unpopular selection sparked the first significant doubts about the owner’s skills and judgment.
In a complete managerial change, Allardyce led Everton to ninth place but was fired at the end of the season after six months.
Moshiri then carried out his wish to bring in Marco Silva, whom he had tried to sign before Allardyce but had been fired by Watford, who blamed Everton’s first clumsy strategy for both his and their downfall.
Marcel Brands, the well-liked director of football at PSV Eindhoven, also arrived at Goodison Park to take Walsh’s place.
Moshiri gave Brands “a broader remit, responsible for the whole footballing strategy at the club, rather than just player recruitment” and a position on the Everton board as a reward for making such a positive first impression.
Once again, Moshiri’s schemes failed.
With purchases like Moise Kean and Jean-Philippe Gbamin, who cost over £50 million apiece, failing to produce results, Brands was left feeling disappointed and marginalized.
The erratic whims of Moshiri, not Brands, dictated strategy when it came to choosing managers.
The new relationship was successful for a while, as Silva’s Everton played appealing football and placed ninth in his lone complete season. Another false dawn.
After a 5-2 loss to Liverpool in December 2019, Silva was fired, defying Brands’ recommendation (who was an admirer and eager to give him more time).
Moshiri’s impetuous behavior frequently caused difficulties and even surfaced during the Silva succession quest.
Reuniting with Moyes was something Chairman Kenwright had long desired. When Moyes traveled to Germany to see Moshiri to finalize his reappointment, it appeared as though he would finally achieve his dream.
While in Germany, Moyes was really contacted by David Sullivan, the owner of West Ham United, who wanted him to rejoin the team a second time. However, Moyes believed he was on his way back to Goodison Park.
Then fate intervened.
Napoli fired Carlo Ancelotti the night Moyes believed he was returning to Everton. As impetuous as usual, Moshiri saw this as his opportunity to finally get the renowned reputation he had always desired.
Early indications were positive, and Ancelotti accepted Everton’s offer. Even though the team won at Liverpool for the first time in twenty-two years and the Italian managed to entice James Rodriguez from Real Madrid to Goodison Park, Ancelotti’s one and only season was uneventful as they finished in tenth place.
With a 46% victory rate from 67 games, Ancelotti had the highest win percentage of any Moshiri selection until he left to rejoin Real Madrid.
By hiring former Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez, Moshiri made his most contentious decision, which may have been the last straw for Everton supporters.
It was the most controversial managerial decision in Everton’s history. Benitez was not just a legend at Anfield following their Champions League victory in 2005, but he was also despised by a significant section of the blue fan base due to one notorious statement, calling them a “small club” following a 2007 derby draw.
According to Mike Richards of The Unholy Trinity Everton podcast, this is when many stopped believing in Moshiri.
He stated to BBC Sport: “When you go from ‘Don’ Carlo to the former Champions League manager of your bitter rivals, you have to question the sanity of those in charge of the club.”
Although a threatening banner with the words “We Know Where You Live” intended for the Spaniard missed most of its power since it was placed outside the wrong house, Everton’s supporters were already in revolt before Benitez arrived.
Brands, who was not the driving force behind the Benitez hiring, had far less impact. Shortly after a confrontation with fans following Everton’s 4-1 derby loss to Liverpool at home, he quit the team in December 2021.
As it turned out, Benitez had no chance.
Even by Moshiri’s standards, his 154-day tenure was brief, since Everton finished 15th in the standings and there was growing open dissension among fans.
In the penultimate match of the 2021–22 season, Everton overcame a 2-0 deficit to defeat Crystal Palace at Goodison Park, and Frank Lampard, who lasted less than a year, at least helped the team avoid relegation.
Everton came much closer to relegation that season, but they managed to escape with a victory over Bournemouth on the last day of the season, and Sean Dyche was appointed number seven in January 2023.
But Premier League survival was just the beginning of the vast iceberg Moshiri had guided Everton toward.
