Everton manager David Moyes has been able to count on several excellent midfielders throughout his spells managing the Toffees, Manchester United and West Ham United.
During his first spell on Merseyside, the Scot had players such as Tim Cahill, Marouane Fellaini, Steven Pienaar, and, of course, Mikel Arteta, to call upon as the club regularly finished in the top eight of the Premier League table and qualified for Europe.
While he wasn’t at Old Trafford for long, Moyes could count on Michael Carrick, Tom Cleverley and Shinji Kagawa.
It was at West Ham, however, that the 62-year-old would work with arguably one of the finest midfielders of his managerial career.
Declan Rice may have made his debut for West Ham under the leadership of Slaven Bilic, but it was Moyes who nurtured the Englishman and turned him from someone with bags of potential into a world-class superstar.
Why Declan Rice was so good under David Moyes
Rice really came of age during the 2017/18 season, making a total of 23 appearances in all competitions for the Irons.
He made his FA Cup debut under Moyes in January 2018 and was a regular under him until the Scot departed at the end of that season.
The former Man United boss returned to the London Stadium in December 2019, and by that time, Rice was firmly established as one of the finest players in the squad.
Indeed, the midfielder even made his England debut in March 2019 under Gareth Southgate.
Rice led West Ham to an impressive sixth-place finish in the 2020/21 Premier League season, which saw the club secure qualification for the Europa League.
The Englishman starlet made ten appearances in Europe as the Irons reached the semi-finals before being knocked out by Eintracht Frankfurt. The following campaign, however, saw Rice become the first West Ham captain since Bobby Moore in 1965 to lift European silverware.
He missed all but two games of that season as they won the Conference League against Fiorentina, scoring once and providing an assist along the way.
Throughout that Euro campaign, Rice succeeded with 91% of his passes, won over 70% of his ground duels per game, lost possession just 5.5 times per match and averaged 1.7 tackles each game, proving that he was the cornerstone for Moyes’ side in Europe.
It was a fitting way for the player to end his time at West Ham, as in the summer of 2023, he made the move to Arsenal for a fee in the region of £100m.
His development under Moyes was incredible, and he surely has a lot to thank his old boss for. That’s for sure.
The Scot would love to have another midfielder who exudes all of Rice’s qualities ahead of the coming season, especially as he targets a top-half Premier League finish for the club.
Could Everton be targeting a former Premier League star in the transfer market? One who seemingly wants to make the move to Merseyside this summer?
Everton could sign Moyes' new Rice
Thierno Barry has made the move to the northwest, while Moyes is keen on securing a stunning deal to sign Malick Fofana from Lyon.
Elsewhere, Adam Aznou is closing in on a move to Everton from Bayern Munich, and this will give Moyes options on the left side of the defence.
Now, it looks as though he is ready to make moves in order to bolster his midfield. Former Aston Villa star Douglas Luiz is one name who has been linked of late, but a recent update suggests the Toffees might just be frontrunners for his signature.
According to Italian publication Gazzetta dello Sport (via Sport Witness), Luiz is now pushing for a move to Everton, despite Nottingham Forest and West Ham still in the running for the player.
This is one transfer that Moyes should be looking to wrap up as soon as possible. Not only does Luiz have the perfect attributes to succeed under his system, but his vast Premier League experience means he won’t need time to settle.
Furthermore, and perhaps more importantly, Luiz could turn out to be Moyes’ next Rice…
Why Everton must sign Douglas Luiz
During Luiz’s final season with Aston Villa in 2023/24, Rice was the seventh-most comparable player to the Brazilian in the Premier League, via FBref.
Indeed, the pair even registered similar statistics when it came to a range of metrics, including goals and assists (14 vs 15), shots per 90 (1.32 vs 1.62), pass success rate (85.7% vs 89.7%), shot-creating actions per 90 (3.52 vs 2.79) and tackles won (38 vs 51) in the top flight that campaign.
Matches (starts)
35 (35)
19 (3)
Goals
9
0
Assists
5
0
Touches per game
70.1
27.3
Pass completion
89%
90%
Big chances created
10
3
Key passes per game
1.5
0.8
Dribbles per game
0.7
0.6
Ball recoveries per game
5.5
1.6
Duels (won)*
4.2 (51%)
1.9 (55%)
According to WhoScored, both Luiz and Rice count key passing and taking set pieces as main strengths, while the duo are also able to provide a major goal threat in the final third, as well as offer excellent defensive support.
Luiz went from raw talent to a genuine “world-class” player – according to John McGinn – and this secured him his big move to Juventus last summer.
Unfortunately, it didn’t quite work out for the former Manchester City midfielder in Turin, where he made just 27 appearances in all competitions after signing for £42m, with only ten of those coming in the starting XI.
Despite this, he still managed to create three big chances in Serie A, while also averaging 0.8 key passes per game, all while averaging 27 minutes per game for the Old Lady.
It is evident that he needs a fresh start to kickstart his career, and Moyes could certainly provide him with the ideal platform to shine.
Given the comparisons between him and Rice, the Scot would definitely bring out the best in the former Villa star, that’s for sure.
With less than three weeks to their first league fixture of the season, the manager will be keen on wrapping up this deal sooner rather than later. If so, Luiz can become Moyes’ new Rice.
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