Moyes stirs up rivalry as Everton eye Europe and a derby debut to remember

Upwardly-mobile hosts are raising expectations heading into the first showdown against Liverpool at Hill Dickinson Stadium

David Moyes extended sympathy and support for Arne Slot – which may not be what any Liverpool manager wishes to hear from an Everton counterpart before a Merseyside derby – yet could not resist the temptation to stir up some local rivalry in the same breath.

There was a gleam in the eye and a barely suppressed grin on Moyes’s face as he ridiculed one of the reasons Slot has presented for the champions’ decline this season.

“Absolutely,” said the Everton manager when asked whether he sympathised with Slot’s predicament, just 12 months after he was on the verge of winning the Premier League title in his debut season. “Arne Slot has done a brilliant job and, I have got to say, he is really good coach.

That is from a neutral point of view.