Eddie Howe is a boyhood Everton fan but could he be tempted to leave Bournemouth for the Premier League strugglers? Sam Allardyce thinks so.
Sam Allardyce believes boyhood Toffees fanatic Eddie Howe would struggle to turn down the chance to potentially replace the much-maligned Marco Silva at Everton, while telling Alan Brazil on talkSPORT (8 October, 8:00am) that David Moyes could also be an option to return to Goodison Park.
Just eight games into the 2019/20 season and the pressure is already mounting on Silva.
A 1-0 defeat to Burnley on Saturday – sealed by yet another set-piece goal – means Everton are stuck in the relegation zone heading into the October international break, despite another summer of heavy spending.
There is no suggestion that majority shareholder Farhad Moshiri is set to sack a coach he fought tooth and nail to lure from Watford but there is a growing contingent on Merseyside who feel that Silva is on borrowed time.
Bournemouth boss Howe admitted to the Graham Hunter Podcast in 2016 that his blood runs blue and Allardyce, who coached Everton during the 2017/18 season, believes the highly-rated 41-year-old could have his head turned by a dream job – even if it means walking away from the Cherries.
“It’s very tempting. I think at one stage he needs to go, he’s proven his worth and needs to go and test himself elsewhere,” Allardyce said. “When its Everton, if they come calling, he used to be a fan…”
Everton fans might be up for the idea of one of England’s most promising young coaches, a man whose Bournemouth team outclassed The Toffees just weeks ago, taking over from Silva.
But despite Moyes’s remarkable achievements over 11 years in charge, it doesn’t seem likely that the Scot would be welcomed back on Merseyside with his reputation in tatters following disastrous spells at Manchester United, Sunderland and even Real Sociedad.
Nevertheless, Allardyce believes his old pal would return in a heartbeat if he was asked.
“I thin Moyes would go back, he had 11 fantastic years, saved them from relegation and then got them into Europe. I remember him qualifying for the Champions League (in 2005),” he said.
“I think he’d really like to go back. He’d love to go back.”
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