David Moyes Faces Regret After Everton's Transfer Deadline Day Chaos

David Moyes walked out of deadline day with a familiar feeling. Regret.

Everton’s manager admitted he “has to live with disappointments” after a frantic final few hours of the window yielded as many setbacks as solutions at Finch Farm.

The headline frustration came with Folarin Balogun. The Monaco striker had completed his medical, the clubs had renegotiated an initial £40m agreement after an issue was flagged, and both sides even filed a deal sheet before the 23:00 BST cut-off to buy more time. The move looked done.

Then Balogun walked away.

The 25-year-old United States international, drafted in as a late target once Beto sealed a permanent move to Fiorentina, changed his mind at the last moment and the transfer collapsed.

“It wasn’t anyone’s fault and ultimately it happens in football as the player had a problem in his medical and that was simply it,” Moyes said. “There are no other stories behind it. That is exactly what happened.”

For Everton, it was a brutal twist at the end of a day spent chasing attacking reinforcements.

Big names chased, few landed

Balogun was not the only forward on their list. Everton pushed for Manchester United’s Joshua Zirkzee and Aston Villa striker Tammy Abraham, but neither could be persuaded to join. Talks were held, options explored, but no agreement came.

The club did manage one eye-catching arrival. Jack Grealish completed a season-long loan from Manchester City, a move that injects proven Premier League quality and creativity into Moyes’ squad.

Yet that coup came with a heavy cost.

Star attacker Iliman Ndiaye departed for City in a £65m deal, stripping Everton of a player who had become central to their attacking identity. Ndiaye scored 15 goals and provided four assists in 67 Premier League appearances for the Toffees, numbers that only hint at his influence.

Moyes admitted that part of the rationale behind selling Ndiaye was to free up funds for new signings.

“We were looking to get some money in,” he said. “We lost Iliman Ndiaye, which is someone who we definitely didn’t want to lose, but sometimes it is difficult when the likes of Man City come along.”

The manager did not hide his frustration.

“I am disappointed that we didn’t do more business and things didn’t go our way in the end,” he said. “Sometimes in football you have to live with disappointments and move on, and we will.”

Defensive plans hit and miss

Everton’s attempts to reshape the squad were not limited to the forward line. At the back, they pushed to bring in Kenny Tete from Fulham, only for that move to stall when Fulham failed to secure a replacement. The deal died with the clock ticking down.

They did, however, land Ainsley Maitland-Niles from Lyon in a £3m deal. The versatile right-back adds depth and energy, but he arrives as part of a window that left Everton short of what they had hoped to achieve.

“Some things went against us and some things we could have done better,” Moyes reflected. “Ultimately we didn’t want to lose a lot of the different players but for reasons that had to happen.”

In the end, Everton’s deadline day told a familiar story: one marquee sale, one high-profile loan, a handful of near-misses and a manager left to knit together a squad that looks one or two signings light of his original plan.

The window has closed. The questions now move from the boardroom to the pitch.