Do we overemphasise the influence of Premier League managers?

Do we overemphasise the influence of Premier League managers?

David Moyes made three stoppage-time substitutions against Man City -- just seconds before their last-gasp equaliser

(Photo by Warren Little/Getty Images)

Football is famously a results business, and the buck almost always stops with the manager. But with the dust settled on Monday’s draw with Manchester City, and the inevitable debate on these pages that followed, I found myself pondering whether we overemphasise the influence of the man in the dugout.

​David Moyes made three stoppage-time substitutions on Monday night, each occurring just seconds before City’s last-gasp leveller.

Nathan Patterson’s introduction for Merlin Röhl drew ire, even if the German had run himself into the ground. The former slipped when attempting to close down Jeremy Doku before his equaliser, while another late substitute, Carlos Alcaraz, did not cover himself in glory either.

​But how much of the blame lies with Moyes? A decision-maker and influencer, of course, but should he really shoulder the responsibility for basic defensive lapses? City’s second goal, dissecting the home defence just seconds after Everton had established a 3-1 lead, was even worse.

Substitutions are one route of managerial influence, in a role where there are a myriad of factors out of their control. The imbalance of quality between teams, vagaries of refereeing decisions and VAR influence, and pure fortune, on either side of the coin, to name a few.

​That’s not to absolve Moyes of any blame. He has his culpability this season, and his flaws have been discussed with increasing repetition on these pages. But until the three pillars of success are strong: recruitment, investment, and coaching, Everton will always be up against it. There’s an argument that the importance is in that order.

​Many of the Premier League’s recent overachievers, Brighton, Brentford, and Bournemouth, have lost highly-touted head coaches without as much as batting an eyelid. Each of those sides have excelled in unearthing talent, allowing for further investment through substantial sales, and coaches to succeed with the spoils.

​Chelsea, in contrast, have had eye-watering investment, but without the talent ID or coaching to make it a success.

​Managers were once the figureheads of football clubs, but those days appear in the distant past. This is an era in which sporting directors and transfer panels share the control, but rarely a portion of the blame.

Sir Alex Ferguson shaped Manchester United in his own image, and their decline since his exit has been well-documented, but that looks an increasing anomaly. Liverpool might hail Jurgen Klopp’s individual impact, but again, the German was one piece of the puzzle. It was no coincidence that the club started to slide once Michael Edwards exited and Klopp took on a greater control of transfers.

​Everton, right now, need improvement in all areas. The seventh-highest net spend of last summer was a necessary start, with only Brighton, among teams that will play in the top tier next season, having invested less across the last five seasons.

​The jury remains out on most of those signings, and the hope will be that Everton can target ceiling-raisers this summer, after a 2025 transfer window in which quantity was as much the focus as quality.

​And so, back to Moyes. The 63-year-old can be uninspiring and pragmatic to a fault, but there’s logic to Everton’s interest in an extension. The proverbial "safe pair of hands" might just be what this board wants, a risk-averse leader to keep things steady until the other pillars of success are strong. The frustration from the fans will be if the timeline takes longer than expected.