EXCLUSIVE: 'There was always something about Everton' - David Moyes reveals 'People's Club' inspiration and what kept him up night before first game

Twenty years on from his appointment as Everton manager, David Moyes has lifted the lid on the true inspiration behind his now iconic ‘People’s Club’ declaration and revealed what kept him awake the night before his first game as Blues boss.

On March 16, 2002, Everton, without a victory in their previous seven Premier League matches, defeated Fulham 2-1 at Goodison Park in Moyes’ first match in charge. The fixture came less than 48 hours after the then 38-year-old had been unveiled as fellow Scot Walter Smith’s successor.

Recalling his whirlwind start on Merseyside, Moyes, now manager of West Ham United, told the ECHO: “It doesn’t seem like 20 years, I can still remember it all, the build-up, the day itself going to Goodison Park but in the same breath I’ve had a lot of football under my belt since then as well.

“I did have other opportunities and there were other clubs I could have gone to and people had made enquiries. At the time I’d never really wanted to leave Preston. We’d built up a really good team there and were close to getting into the Premier League ourselves.

“I always remember there was a director at Blackpool and he used to say to me: ‘Everton is the club for you’. I remember when Everton made an approach, the fact that Walter Smith, who was a great friend of mine, had lost his job, that was the worst thing.

“There was always something about Everton for me. They were one of the big six clubs and had always been a big club. I lived in Preston at the time and it suited me with my family and it was easy to travel to but the hardest part was that Walter was a friend of mine and I wasn’t looking forward to taking over from Walter.”

So what about that famous ‘People’s Club’ declaration? Moyes reveals it was an