Moyes demands more from Everton but bans talk of Europe

Everton beat Ipswich Town 1-0 at home in the Premier League on 19 September 2026, and manager David Moyes said "We are not using those words this year" when asked about European qualification. Thierno Barry's 11th-minute strike decided the game.

Everton have two wins and three draws from their opening five Premier League matches and have also won two Carabao Cup ties, leaving them unbeaten after five league games and sitting fifth in the table on nine points. The club's start has been described as a healthy one by Moyes, but he refused to let talk turn to continental competition.

Moyes repeated that stance after the win, saying: "Not [saying] in front of you people [the media], that's for sure, because we're still preparing ourselves and make sure we can do the best we can. "I enjoyed saying the words last year. If you think of what we had done, been relegation material when we came in January [2025], got out and won the games, 12/13 new players had to come in... "But the players had done so well, I started to believe that we had a real chance, and it allowed me to be like that."

He pointed to last season's late collapse as the reason for caution: a 3-0 win over Chelsea in March left Everton eighth and three points short of a Champions League position, but the club then failed to win any of their final seven matches and ultimately finished 13th. Everton ended that campaign four points behind Brighton, who qualified for the Conference League, and five behind Sunderland, who joined Bournemouth and Crystal Palace in the Europa League.

Defensive solidity has underpinned Everton's recent form, with the side keeping five clean sheets in seven matches overall. Barry's 11th-minute goal was his fifth of the season — two in the Premier League plus a hat-trick in the 4-0 Carabao Cup win at Preston — and his scoring has become more important since Beto moved to Fiorentina and Iliman Ndiaye joined Manchester City on transfer deadline day, leaving Barry as the only recognised striker at the club.

Moyes praised aspects of the team's performances but pressed his players on finishing: "We've had draws at Tottenham and Bournemouth away from home and we've done pretty well," he said. "Keeping clean sheets is something to be pleased about and try to build on. "We've statistically been making more chances and we had 21 shots [against Ipswich], which is very good, but only two on target which isn't very good. "The players get huge credit to get to this point, unbeaten in five games. It's really good, but I'm expecting them to do this. "If we're thinking 'we're doing a great job because we've gone a few games', no, the manager expects that. I'm actually more disappointed that we aren't scoring more goals. "I'm rapping them like you wouldn't believe - why are we not getting better crosses into the box, better finishes, shooting from the edge of the box, not scoring more? That's the only thing we're missing from being a half-decent side."

Former England midfielder Danny Murphy told the BBC: "Nothing surprises me with a David Moyes side. "They're so well organised, so well motivated and always dangerous when their backs are against the wall. There's been a lot of discontent among the fanbase regarding the owners and a transfer policy that left themselves short in forward areas. "But the rest of the side is so well balanced, they all know their jobs, they know what they're doing and that backline with the keeper behind it is really solid. So, I never thought it was a catastrophe that they didn't get a striker in. "Because they're so well organised and defensively so good, they're always going to nick results when they're not playing well. I do understand the fans' frustration, but I didn't think for a second they'd be in any danger because they didn't get cover in for their forwards. "It is a thin squad, but they've still got quality."

Goalkeeper Jordan Pickford described the victory as a positive way to finish the week: "You have to dig in, that's the Everton way," Pickford said. "We are building momentum and we will be focused and ready to go when we come back. It was a great way to finish the week off." On Barry he added: "He works hard and the goals will come from working hard. The first year in the Premier League is always tough. He has found his feet and he has started a lot better this year. "It's always good to finish with a win, especially before a long international break."

Everton will not play another Premier League match until 11 October when they face Hull City, and they have a Carabao Cup home last-16 tie against Newcastle scheduled in October.