David Moyes Reflects on Disappointing Transfer Window
David Moyes wore the look of a manager who has seen this film before and still doesn’t like the ending.
Asked for his verdict on the transfer window, he didn’t dress it up. “Disappointed we didn't do more business, disappointed things didn't go our way in the end.”
That set the tone. This was a manager who believes he knows exactly what a Premier League squad should look like – and knows his isn’t there yet.
A window that bit back
Moyes made it clear: last season’s overachievement has raised expectations, not dulled them. He feels the team punched above its weight and wants to do it again, but the market has not helped him.
“Not very well,” he admitted when asked how the window had impacted his ambitions for the season on a personal level.
He didn’t want to lose as many players as he did. They went anyway. “Some things went against us, some things we could have done better,” he reflected, a blunt assessment of a summer that frayed plans and stretched patience.
The failed move for Folarin Balogun summed up the frustration. “It wasn't anyone's fault,” Moyes said. Medical issues can derail deals, and this one simply slipped away. No drama, no blame – just another striker he doesn’t have.
He also acknowledged that Everton were exploring ways to bring money in, and that “ultimately, those things were talked about” in relation to Armstrong. The club considered options. The solutions never quite landed.
Garner, bids and belief
One story Moyes moved quickly to kill was talk of late drama around James Garner.
“Completely untrue – there was no truth in that whatsoever,” he said of claims Chelsea had made a late bid for the midfielder.
On Garner himself, Moyes sounded both proud and wary. When a player emerges as a top performer, interest is inevitable. The manager knows that. He just hopes Garner keeps driving on as he did last season, anchoring a side that again looks set to fight with more spirit than depth.
Owners learning on the job
The question of alignment between manager, board and TFG drew a thoughtful pause. Moyes didn’t hide from the reality that the club is still in transition.
For real success, he said, they all need to be aligned. Right now, the new owners are still learning what it means to run a Premier League club. As they grow into that role, he expects the alignment to improve.
He also confirmed he has had no conversations with TFG about their search for investment. Whatever is happening in the boardroom, Moyes is operating on the football side, with the squad in front of him and holes still to fill.
Academy hopes and hard truths
The academy might have to provide some of the answers. Or at least some cover.
Moyes admitted he isn’t sure whether anyone is truly ready to step up, but he may have to call on them this season. Needs must.
Braiden Graham is a case in point. “I don't think he is a striker, first of all,” Moyes said. He likes the youngster, who featured heavily in pre-season, and believes he is making progress. But expecting him to be a source of Premier League goals right now would be a stretch. Promise, yes. Responsibility, not yet.
He even admitted that, had he known the squad would look like this, he would have tried some different players up front in friendlies. That’s as close as Moyes gets to saying he’s been caught short.
Free agents, platforms and international dreams
The free agent market is on the table, but not as a panic button. Moyes will only move if he believes a player genuinely improves the team.
He wants more than bodies. He wants players who see the club as a platform – a place where they can push into international setups, like Hayden Hackney or Jarrad Branthwaite aspire to. That pitch still matters, even in a window that left him short.
For now, he’s concentrating on the work in front of him. Conversations with figures like George and Johnson about supporting Barry will come, but only when the immediate fires are under control. As he put it, he’ll need to find solutions as the problems emerge.
Backed by the stands
One area where Moyes feels fully supported is in the stands. He praised the travelling fans at Bournemouth, and he knows he will need that same edge when they face Manchester United.
Behind the scenes, he insists, there is “a lot of positivity and a lot of confidence in how we started the season.” His job now is to keep feeding that belief, to keep backing the players who stayed, even if the ones he wanted didn’t arrive.
He didn’t want to lose key men like Ndiaye. He’s been here before, with talents such as Rooney. The cycle repeats. The challenge remains the same.
The question is whether this time, with a learning ownership, a bruised squad and a manager who “knows what it looks like to build a squad for the PL,” the club finally gives him the tools to match his ambition.
