History of Everton F.C.

Everton Football Club have a long and detailed history. The club's roots lie in an English Methodist congregation called New Connexion founded by Guto Sion Jones in 1865, who decided to build a new chapel in the Liverpool area in 1868. The following year, the church bought some land on Breckfield Road North, between St. Domingo Vale and St. Domingo Grove. This was located near the district of Everton, which had become part of the City of Liverpool in 1835. Since then Everton have had a successful history winning the Cup Winners' Cup, the league title 9 times and the FA Cup 5 times. They are the only club to have played over 100 seasons in the top flight of English football, the 2008-2009 season being their 106th.

1878 foundation

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The first ever Everton team to win the FA Cup

Chart showing the progress of Everton F.C. through the English football league system from the inaugural season in 1888–89 to 2007–08 when Everton finished fifth in the Premier League

St. Domingo Methodist Church's new chapel was opened in 1871 and six years later, Rev. Ben Swift Chambers was appointed Minister. He created a cricket team for the youngsters in the parish but, as cricket was only played in summer, there was room for another sport during winter. Thus a football club called St. Domingo's F.C. was formed in 1878.

Many people outside the parish were interested in joining the football club so it was decided that the name should be changed. In November 1879 at a meeting in the Queen's Head Hotel, the team name was changed to Everton Football Club, after the surrounding area. Barker and Dobson, a local sweet manufacturer, introduced "Everton Mints" to honour the club. The district is also the location of the team's crest image, an old bridewell known as Prince Rupert's Tower.

Everton originally played on an open pitch in the southeast corner of the newly laid out Stanley Park, the site for the proposed new Liverpool F.C. stadium. The first official match under the name Everton F.C. took place in 1879 against St. Peters with a 5-0 win. John Houlding's house backed onto the park and was attracted to the club that attracted large crowds.

Professional clubs required proper enclosed facilities. In 1882, a Mr J. Cruit donated land at Priory Road which became the club's home for two years, with proper hoarding and turnstiles. Mr Cruit asked the club to leave his land as the crowds became far too large and noisy. Everton moved to nearby Anfield in 1884, renting from John Orrell, a friend of Houlding. Proper covered stands were built. Houlding bought Anfield one year after Everton moved in, Everton initially making a donation to a local hospital in lieu of rent before paying rent to their own president.

Football League founders

In 1888 Everton became founder members of the Football League, finishing eighth the first season and second the following. The 1890–91 season started in superb form with five straight victories, with Fred Geary scoring in each of the first six matches. By mid-January, Everton had completed all but one of their fixtures and were on 29 points, while Preston North End were eleven points adrift with seven games still to play. Everton than had to sit out the next two months as Preston completed their fixture list until they were only two points adrift with one match each left to play. Both teams played their final games of the season on 14 March, with Everton losing 3–2 at Burnley (Geary scored both Everton goals) and Preston going down 3–0 at Sunderland. Everton were thus able to win the Football League Championship for the first time, by a margin of two points with fourteen victories from their 22 league games. Geary had been ever-present, and was the club's top goal-scorer with 21 goals.

By this point the Everton committee and President John Houlding had started to become embroiled in conflict. The Liberal leaning committee viewed Tory councillor Houlding as having a personal financial and political agenda and there was disagreement over the club's business model and the issue of selling refreshments, to which Houlding had sole rights. Houlding had increased the club's rent by 150% after the 1889–90 season to £250 per annum. John Orrell, who owned the adjacent land, then attempted to legally run a road through the new main stand to access his land. This would require Everton to buy both Anfield and Orrell's land or to rent both. Everton committee members accused Houlding of knowing of the legal right of way and allowing the new stand to be built. The committee wanted Houlding to negotiate on the combined Anfield and Orrell's land rent of £370 or the purchase of both, but were told the fee was non-negotiable.

Houlding registered the name Everton F.C. and Athletic Grounds, Ltd.in March 1892 while Everton were still occupying and playing at Anfield and sought to take over Everton's fixtures and position in the Football League. The Football Council would not recognise Houlding's new company as Everton, resulting in his changing the name to Liverpool F.C. and Athletic Grounds Ltd in June 1892, creating Liverpool F.C.. Everton moved to Goodison Park on the north side of Stanley Park, issuing 5,000 shares as they did so, giving the directors a 6% stake in the club. Everton played their last match at Anfield on 18 April 1892 vs. Bolton Wanderers

Following the move to Goodison Park Everton reached four FA Cup finals before the First World War, losing 1-0 against Wolverhampton Wanderers at Fallowfield Stadium on 26 March 1893 and 3-2 against Aston Villa at Crystal Palace on 10 April 1897 before winning at their third attempt on 20 April 1906 again against Newcastle United at Crystal Palace. Their second successive final on 20 April 1907, however, finished in a 2-1 defeat by Sheffield Wednesday. 1914–15 was to be the final season before league football was suspended for the duration of World War I and saw Everton win their second league title, one point ahead of

.

Interwar years: Dean and co.

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Dixie Dean scores a trademark header against rivals Liverpool

William Ralph "Dixie" Dean was one of the greatest goal scorers that the English game has seen. After averaging a goal a match for Tranmere Rovers, prolific striker Dean was lured across the River Mersey to play for Everton. In his first season for Everton, the 1925–26 season, Dean netted 32 league goals in 38 matches, scoring his first two on his debut. The next season he scored 21 goals in 27 matches.

1927-28

Making history in 1927–28, Dean scored 60 league goals in 39 matches, setting a record that has stood ever since and almost single-handedly gave Everton the league title.

In a bizarre turn of events, in 1930 Everton finished last in the first division being relegated to the second division. Dean was on top form in the secondary league, scoring 39 goals in 37 matches and lifting Everton to promotion at the first attempt. The following season, Dean scored 45 goals and Everton regained the league title.

In 1933, Everton won the FA Cup, with Dean becoming Everton's first-ever number 9 in the 3–0 final win against Manchester City. In this match, numbers were worn for the first time. The number 9 would become synonymous with commanding and high-scoring strikers at domestic and international level football, something Dean embodied.

He played his last match for Everton on 11 December 1937. Dean died at a Merseyside derby at Goodison Park in 1980, leaving behind a legacy of 383 goals in 433 matches overall.

In the 1938-39 season, Everton, with Joe Mercer, T.G. Jones and Tommy Lawton won the Football League Championship again. Lawton scored 34 goals during the season at the age of 19. The outbreak of World War II interrupted the players' careers for six years, bringing a halt to a team which otherwise may have achieved much more.

The 1940s/50s: The barren years

Although the 1990s have been regarded as a poor decade, this era was worse. The great 1939 Championship winning team was quickly split up in 1946. Tommy Lawton was sold to Chelsea, Joe Mercer disagreed with the manager Theo Kelly and was sold to Arsenal, and they tried to sell T.G. Jones to A.S. Roma. Soon only Ted Sagar was left.

Under the management of the uninspired and under-financed Cliff Britton, Everton were relegated after the 1950-51 season for only the second time in their history to the Second Division. This time it took three seasons before Everton were promoted in 1954 as the runners-up. The final match of the season decided promotion when the Everton beat Oldham away 4-0.

The era nevertheless had some notable players such as Dave Hickson and Bobby Collins. Memorable matches included ending Manchester United's long unbeaten run at Old Trafford with a 5-2 win in 1956.

Everton did reach the FA Cup semi-finals twice, in 1950 loosing to Liverpool and 1953, loosing to Bolton 4-3.

The Harry Catterick Era (1961-1974)

Honours Won : League Championship (1963), Charity Shield (1963), FA Cup (1966), League Championship (1970), Charity Shield (1970),

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Catterick's Everton wins the FA Cup

The 1960s is regarded by many fans as the golden era of Everton Football Club. After the barren period of the 1950s, Harry Catterick took charge of the Everton in 1961. The team were soon to be dubbed the "School of Science" after their methodical approach in the tradition of the Everton team in the 1920s who were first given this name. Their football was inventive and flowing similar to Tottenham's "Push and Run" style. In Catterick's first full season as manager Everton conceded fewer goals than any other team and finished fourth.

The following season, the Toffees lost just six of their 42 matches and took the title, Everton's sixth. The striking partnership of Roy Vernon and Alex Young scoring 46 goals between them (the last time two Everton players have scored more than 20 goals each in one season). Other notable players included Billy Bingham, Jimmy Gabriel, Derek Temple, Bobby Collins and Brian Labone.

In 1966, the same year the English international team won the World Cup, Everton took home the FA Cup in a classic, after overturning a two-goal deficit against Sheffield Wednesday in the final to win 3-2. Everton reached final again in 1968, but were unable to overcome West Bromwich Albion at Wembley. The following year Everton did progress to the semi-finals, loosing 1-0 to Manchester City.

A year later in the 1969-70 season, Everton won the Championship again thanks in part to the scoring sensation of Joe Royle, who would later manage the club to FA Cup success in 1995. The success of the team could be seen from the number of points won (one short of the record) and nine clear of Leeds United. The team won the league in style, playing what was virtually a form of Total Football orchestrated by the "Holy Trinity" midfield of Howard Kendall, Alan Ball and Colin Harvey. With Labone at centre-half and club captain and Royle up front, this is regarded by many fans as the club's finest side ever.

Harry Catterick's team of 1969-70 seemed destined for greatness but declined quickly. In 1970-71 Everton did not recapture their league form but did progress on two cup fronts. For only the second time, Everton played in the European Cup reaching the Quarter-finals but were knocked out by Greek side Panatinaikos on the away goals rule. The previous weekend Everton took on neighbours Liverpool in the FA Cup semi final and lost 2-1.

Everton finished 14th in 1971, and 15th, 17th and 7th in the following seasons. The stress of an under-performing team was said to be a factor in Harry Catterick's poor health and eventual resignation in 1974.

The Billy Bingham and Gordon Lee Era (1974-1981)

Gordon Lee Honours: Football League Cup- Runners Up (1977),

Everton were on course to win the Championship in the 1974-75 season under Billy Bingham (some bookmakers had even stopped taking bets at Easter) but some surprising losses to lowly opposition ended the challenge and they finished 4th. After two relatively poor seasons (11th and 9th), Bingham left in 1977.

During the interregnum, Everton reached their first League Cup final, with Aston Villa, and the FA Cup Semi final, against Liverpool. In the League Cup Everton and Aston Villa drew the final at Wembley and drew the replay at Hillsborough, before losing late in extra time of the second replay at Old Trafford. The FA Cup Semi final was drawn 2-2 but the match will forever be remembered for the goal by Bryan Hamilton that was disallowed. Everton lost the replay 3-0.

Under Gordon Lee Everton finished third in 1977-78 and Bob Latchford topped the division scoring chart with 30 league goals. In the 1978-79 season after again looking serious title challengers for much of these seasons, Everton finished 4th. The expectations were high given the success of Liverpool across the park, but finishes of 19th in 1979-80 and 15th in 1980-81, too close to the relegation zone for comfort, led to Lee's departure. Everton did reach the FA Cup Semi final in 1980 drawing with Second Division West Ham but lost the replay.

The Howard Kendall Era (1981-1987)

Honours Won : FA Cup (1984), Charity Shield (1984), European Cup Winners Cup (1985), League Championship (1985), Charity Shield (1985), Charity Shield Shared (1986) League Championship (1987).

Runner-Up : Milk Cup (1984), FA Cup (1985), Division One League(1986), FA Cup (1986)

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Everton lift the European Cup Winners Cup in May 1985

Former Everton player Howard Kendall returned to the club as manager for the 1981-82, having won promotion from the Third Division with Blackburn Rovers and taken them within a whisker of a second successive promotion. Kendall's reign got off to a promising start with a 3-1 win over Birmingham City on the opening day of the season, and they finished eighth in the First Division. Their steady progress continued into the 1982-83 season, as they finished seventh and only narrowly missed out on a UEFA Cup place. The only real letdown that season was a 5-0 home defeat by Liverpool on 6 November 1982.

During the first three seasons after his appointment as Everton manager, Kendall brought through younger players like Neville Southall, Gary Stevens, Derek Mountfield, Peter Reid, Kevin Sheedy and Trevor Steven with Kevin Ratcliffe and Graeme Sharp already at the club. Everton hoped to bring in some success having been massively overshadowed since the early 1970s by neighbouring Liverpool.

1983-84 was a trying season in the league, with Everton being in the bottom half of the First Division for much of the season and fans making continued calls for Howard Kendall to be sacked, but a good run of form in the final weeks of the season saw Everton achieve a seventh place finish once again. Everton were however progressing on two cup fronts. Reaching their second League Cup final, now known as the Milk Cup, the Blues drew 0-0 with Liverpool at Wembley, but eventually lost the replay. The FA Cup though was the silver lining, with Everton wining the final 2-0 against Watford to end a 14-year trophy drought. This was the fourth time Everton had won the 'Cup.

1984-85

The following season was to be one of Everton's finest. Despite a less than convincing start, this young Everton team began to flourish. (to be expanded)

Everton won their eighth league title with four matches to spare. Once again though, Everton were progressing on two cup fronts. In Europe, Everton reached their first European final after defeating German giants Bayern Munich 3-1 at Goodison, in the European Cup Winners' Cup, after the first leg ended 0-0. The match is regarded as one of the most memorable in the clubs history. The final against Rapid Vienna was also won 3-1, as Everton clinched their first-ever European trophy.

In the FA Cup, Everton reached their second successive FA Cup Final. Having already won the league, and having just won the Cup Winners Cup three days earlier, Everton set their minds on a treble. At Wembley, in the final, a tired Everton lost1-0 to Manchester United. Had they not lost, Everton would have joined Liverpool as only the second English team to win three major trophies in one season.

The 1984-85 Cup Winners' Cup campaign was not without its controversy. In a tie with Fortuna Sittard of Holland, an Everton fan streaked on the pitch and was arrested when trying to climb back over the security fencing into the stands. This was one of many high profile pitch invasions by fans of English clubs at home and abroad around this time.

Fans contend that the 1980s Everton team could have gone on to win even more European silverware after their 1985 Cup Winners' Cup success had it not been for the banning of all English clubs from continental competitions by UEFA after the Heysel Stadium disaster (involving, in dark irony, Liverpool fans).

The 1985 close season saw the acquisition of 24-year-old striker Gary Lineker from Leicester City, with Lineker's arrival sparking the controversial departure of the hugely popular Andy Gray, who returned to Aston Villa.

1985-86, even without European action, would be another exciting season for Everton. By the end of September, it looked as though Manchester United would be champions of the First Division after winning the first 10 games of the campaign, while Everton were in fifth place and stood 13 points adrift of Manchester United and also had Liverpool, Chelsea and Newcastle United above them. However, United's excellent form gradually tailed off and Everton went top of the league on 1 February 1986 thanks to a 1-0 win at home to Tottenham Hotspur. After this Everton looked on course to retain the title for most of the remaining season, although Liverpool and surprise contenders West Ham kept on Everton's heels for the following months. However, failure to beat Nottingham Forest followed by a shock 1-0 defeat to Division One newcomers Oxford United on 30 April resulted in Everton being unseated from the top spot by Liverpool, with only three games remaining. Unfortunately, their defence of the title was ended on 3 May 1986 as Liverpool's last league game of the season left the title out of Everton's reach, despite Everton crushing Southampton 6-1 at Goodison Park on the same day. However, Everton won the race for second place by defeating fellow contenders West Ham United 3-1 on the final day of the league season. On 10 May 1986, they took on Liverpool in the first all-Merseyside FA Cup final. A first-half goal by Gary Lineker suggested that the FA Cup would be heading to the blue half of Merseyside, but two goals form Ian Rush and a goal from Craig Johnston saw Liverpool win the trophy to complete the double, while Everton were left with nothing.

Had UEFA decided to lift the ban on English teams in European competitions at the end of that season (though the ban on all clubs was indefinite, it was reviewed at the end of every season), then Everton would have entered the 1986-87 Cup Winners' Cup, but UEFA voted for the ban to continue for at least another season and so there would be no European action for English clubs for the second season running.

The 1986 close season saw Everton sell leading goalscorer Gary Lineker to FC Barcelona of Spain , and the arrival of defender Dave Watson from Norwich City , while midfielder Adrian Heath switched to the role of Graeme Sharp's strike partner.

The 1986-87 season began in a familiar fashion, with Everton and Liverpool being firmly among the contenders, though this time there some unlikely other teams also in contention, including Norwich City and Coventry City. By Christmas, Everton were fourth in the league (level with third placed Liverpool) and a point behind second-placed Nottingham Forest, while a resurgent Arsenal were six points ahead of them at the top of the league. However, a 3-1 win over Coventry City on 7 February 1987 sent them to top of the league, and they clinched the league title on 4 May 1987 with a 1-0 win over Norwich City at Carrow Road.

However, UEFA voted for the ban on English clubs in European competitions to continue in the1987-88 season, meaning that Everton would not be able to compete in the 1987-88 European Cup.

During the 1987 close season, Howard Kendall defected to Spain to become coach of Athletic Bilbao, and was replaced as manager at Everton by his former assistant Colin Harvey.

The Colin Harvey era (1987–1990)

Honours won : Charity Shield (1987)

Runner-up : Simod Cup (1989), FA Cup (1989)

Colin Harvey's first season as manager brought a fourth-place finish (but no UEFA Cup place as UEFA voted for the ban on English clubs in European competitions to continue for another season) and during the 1988 close season Everton became the first English club to buy a player for £2 million when they signed 23-year-old striker Tony Cottee from West Ham United. Despite the new arrival scoring a hat-trick on his debut against Newcastle United and going on to be one of the most highly-rated frontmen ever to wear an Everton shirt, Everton's league fortunes declined in 1988–89 as they finished eighth in the league. Everton returned to Wembley in April for the Full Members Cup final only to lose out to Nottingham Forest and they did reach the FA Cup final though, only to lose 3-2 to Liverpool in extra-time, in a game somewhat overshadowed by the Hillsborough Disaster in Liverpool's semi-final.

1989–90 began well for Everton, who led the league for two weeks in late autumn. There was extra incentive for title glory this season, as UEFA had vowed to lift the ban on English clubs in European competitions for the following season provided England fans behaved well at the World Cup. However, Everton never regained the lead of the league that they had lost in early November, and finished sixth in the final table.

On 31 October 1990, Everton occupied the 18th of 20 places in the First Division. Only the bottom two clubs would be going down this season, as the top flight would be expanding to 22 clubs for 1991–92. However, it was still Everton's worst start to a league season, and manager Colin Harvey paid for these shortcomings with his job.

The Return Of Howard Kendall (1990-1993)

Chart showing the cumulative goal difference of Everton F.C. under different managers from the inaugural season of The Premier League to 25 October 2009

Runner-Up : Zenith Data Systems Cup (1991)

Since leaving Everton in 1987, Howard Kendall had spent two years with Athletic Bilbao before returning to England to take over at Manchester City and save them from relegation. He had overseen their best league form in years during the opening three months of the 1990-91 season, as they occupied fifth place as November dawned. However, on 5 November 1990, Everton made an offer to Kendall to take over as their manager for the second time. He accepted the offer, reinstating Colin Harvey to the club as assistant manager to reform the old manager-coach partnership that had been so successful from 1981 to 1987, while former Everton player Peter Reid (now 34 but still a regular player) succeeded Kendall as Manchester City manager. He guided Everton to a secure ninth place in the final table and also helped them eliminate Liverpool from the FA Cup before bowing out to West Ham United in the quarter-final.

The 1991 close season saw the departure of players including the legendary Graeme Sharp and the less successful Mike Milligan, while Kendall bolstered Everton's attack by signing Peter Beardsley from Liverpool and Mo Johnston from Glasgow Rangers, after being pipped by Liverpool to the signing of Derby County's free-scoring Dean Saunders.

Despite these changes to the squad, Everton continued to decline in 1991-92 as they finished 12th - their lowest finish for more than a decade, although it was enough for a place in the new FA Premier League which took over from the Football League First Division as the highest division of English football.

1992-93 brought yet more frustration at Goodison Park as Everton finished 13th in the new Premier League, and the pressure grew upon Howard Kendall.

The opening stages of the 1993-94 season looked to be the turning point for Howard Kendall in his second spell as Everton manager, as they topped the Premier League after winning their opening three games. However, a dismal run of form followed over the next few weeks, and Kendall walked out on Everton in early December after they had plummeted down the league to occupy a mid table position.

The Mike Walker Era (1994)

In January 1994 Everton found a successor to Howard Kendall when they recruited Mike Walker from a Norwich City side that had recently finished third in the Premier League and eliminated Bayern Munich from the UEFA Cup. Everton would later be fined £75,000 by the Premier League for "indirectly inducing" Walker to leave Norwich. He was now faced with a challenge of saving Everton from relegation from a top flight which they had so far been members of for 40 successive seasons and been champions of just seven years earlier. On the final day of the season needed to beat Wimbledon at Goodison Park in order to stay up. Wimbledon took a 2–0 lead, but Everton pulled off a dramatic escape act to win 3–2 and help send Sheffield United and Oldham Athletic down with already-relegated Swindon Town. Everton made a poor start to the 1994-95 season and were bottom of the league after 14 games, having won just once, and Walker was sacked in November 1994.

The Joe Royle Era (1994-1997)

Honours Won : FA Cup (1995), Charity Shield (1995)

Within days of Walker's sacking, former Everton player Joe Royle had returned to the club as manager after 12 years in charge of Oldham Athletic. His key priority was to save Everton from relegation. He made a few changes to the squad in his first few months as manager, offloading players like Brett Angell and David Burrows, and added defender Earl Barrett to the squad along with the Nigerian striker Daniel Amokachi and the Scottish striker Duncan Ferguson for a club record £4million. Everton confirmed their Premier League survival in the penultimate game of the season when they won 1-0 at already-relegated Ipswich Town.

But the biggest success of Everton's season came on 20 May 1995, when a Paul Rideout goal gave them a 1-0 win over Manchester United in the FA Cup final. The brilliant goalkeeping of Neville Southall also played a crucial part in Everton's first major trophy win for eight years; he made several thrilling saves in the game, including two late shots from 20-year-old Manchester United forward Paul Scholes.

Royle bolstered Everton's squad for 1995-96 with a club record £5million move for Manchester United's unsettled Ukranian winger Andrei Kanchelskis. He was determined to build on the FA Cup glory with a good run in the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup as well as strong form in the domestic competitions, but Everton's cup challenges in 1995-96 were short-lived. However, their league form was vastly improved as they finished sixth and were narrowly pipped to a UEFA Cup place by Arsenal on the final day of the season. It had been a great season for Kanchelskis though, as he scored 16 goals and continued to live up to his reputation as the finest right-winger in the Premier League. However, he defected to Fiorentina halfway through the 1996-97 season, and Everton slowly fell apart without Kanchelskis. Royle stepped down as manager on 27 March 1997 with a relegation battle creeping upon the club. Veteran defender and captain Dave Watson took over as caretaker until the end of the season, helping confirm Everton's survival, but he did not want the job permanently and the hunt was now on for a new manager.

The Third Howard Kendall Era (1997-98)

After the end of the 1996-97 season, Everton approached Howard Kendall (by now at Sheffield United) following rejections from Bobby Robson and Andy Gray about a third spell as the club's manager. He accepted the offer, and there was much hype as the new season began about whether Kendall could still work his old magic and re-establish Everton as one of England's top playing sides. However, 1997-98 was arguably Everton's most difficult season in their current spell in the top division (which began back in 1954) and they only achieved survival on goal difference at the expense of Bolton Wanderers. Off the field, the club was in a major financial crisis at this time which would not be resolved until 1999.

Kendall's third spell as manager ended in June 1998 when he was sacked, and it seemed likely that chairman Peter Johnson would turn to Manchester United assistant manager Brian Kidd as his successor, but the job went to Walter Smith instead.

The Walter Smith Era (1998-2002)

Successful ancien manager des Rangers Walter Smith a pris le relais de Kendall à l'été 1998 et de grandes choses étaient attendus avec quelquessignatures de haut niveau, mais sa première saison a introduit un fini sans particularité 14e place. Au cours de la saison 1998-99 l'attaquant Duncan Ferguson est vendu vendu à àbou quitte son poste. . Despite the loss of Rooney Everton's 2004-05 was much more successful and finished fourth in the table, their highest position since 1988, achieving Champions League qualification, ahead of rivals Liverpool. They played some of their finest football for years, thanks greatly to the 4-5-1 tactic of Moyes and the sensational form of Danish midfielder Thomas Gravesen, who was sold to Real Madrid midway through the season.

Everton started the 2005-06 season badly, with their Champions League campaign ending in defeat by Villarreal in the qualifying stages, after referee Pierluigi Collina controversially disallowed an important Everton goal. After being demoted to the UEFA Cup, they were knocked out by Dinamo Bucharest, who thrashed the English side 5–1 in Romania.

After occupying the Premier League relegation zone throughout October 2005, Everton stopped Chelsea's nine match winning run with a 1-1 draw to spark a short revival that saw the team finally start to get regular results to put much needed points on the board. However, this was followed by another dismal run including several 4-0 defeats to sides in the bottom half of the table and a one sided derby match. A 1-0 win at Sunderland on New Year's Eve started a run of five straight Premiership wins and six matches unbeaten including victory against Arsenal- the club's best run of results since the Premiership began which hauled the team away from the relegation zone, and made a top half finish or even Europe a real possibility. This was not to be as the team remained as inconsistent as ever and a disappointing draw on the last day meant an 11th place finish instead of moving into the top half. Inconsistency and a shortage of goals let Everton down in 2005-06, and ended their hopes of another European campaign.

Everton began the 2006–07 season well, including a first league win at White Hart Lane in twenty years, followed by a 3-0 win over Liverpool. The club's transfer record was broken with the signing of Andrew Johnson from Crystal Palace. At the end of the season Everton were in 6th place and qualified for the following seasons UEFA Cup competition. During the summer of 2007, the club announced the acquisition of a professional basketball team, called the Everton Tigers, and were entered into the British Basketball League as one of three expansion franchises for the 2007-08 season.

In 2007–08 Everton again broke their transfer record with the signing of Yakubu Aiyegbeni for £11.25 million from Middlesbrough, and Thomas Gravesen was re-signed on loan from Celtic. The club reached the group stage of the UEFA Cup, where they went on to win all of their games, including against the eventual winners Zenit St Petersburg. Having successfully negotiated the next round Everton were knocked out in the last 16 by Fiorentina on penalties. In the Football League Cup Everton reached the semi-final for the first time in 20 years, losing to Chelsea. Everton spent much of the season in the top four of the league, but were eventually overtaken by Liverpool and finished 5th, again qualifying for the UEFA Cup.

The following summer was one of some turmoil for Everton as their failure to gain Government acceptance for their proposed stadium move to Kirkby, the departure of Chief Executive Keith Wyness and the seeming reluctance of Moyes to sign a new contract increased the gloom amongst supporters. In the last week of the transfer window the club transfer record was broken with the signing of Marouane Fellaini for £15 million from Standard Liege. Everton failed to qualify for the UEFA Cup group stages as they were eliminated by Liege, with Fellaini ineligible to play against his former team.

Moyes did eventually sign a new 5 year contract with the club, and with it fortunes began to turn. A strong run in November and December (8 wins and 2 draws in 12 league games) propelled the club to the upper reaches of the league table and raised hopes for another top 6 finish.

In early February, Everton played Liverpool 3 times in quick succession, once in the league (a 1-1 draw at Anfield) and twice in the FA Cup, with Everton ultimately proving victorious in the replay at Goodison Park.

Season ending injuries to Yakubu, Mikel Arteta and Phil Jagielka did nothing to halt Everton's progress and the end of the season saw the team finish in 5th place again in the league on the back of only 3 defeats in 29 matches, qualify for the following seasons Europa Cup competition, and reach their First FA Cup Final Since 1995 where they lost to Chelsea.

The 2009/10 season began with the club losing their opening 2 home games, including a 6-1 home defeat at the hands of Arsenal. The club also had to part company with Joleon Lescott who joined Manchester City in a 24m move. On the brighter side, the club qualified for the group stages of the Europa League.

League form continued to suffer into November and December, however, including a 2-0 defeat at the hands of Liverpool. The start of the new year saw Everton struggling for league form in mid-table, while Sporting Lisbon provided the opposition in the first knockout round of the Europa Cup.

Club honours

English football champions 1890-91, 1914-15, 1927-28, 1931-32, 1938-39, 1962-63, 1969-70, 1984-85, 1986-87.

Runners-Up 1889-90, 1894-95, 1901-02, 1904-05, 1908-09, 1911-12, 1985-86.

Football League Second Division Champions 1930-31.

Runners-Up 1953-54.

FA Cup Winners 1906, 1933, 1966, 1984, 1995.

Runners-Up 1893, 1897, 1907, 1968, 1985, 1986, 1989, 2009.

Charity Shield Winners 1928, 1932, 1963, 1970, 1984, 1985, 1987, 1995, Shared 1986.

League Cup Runners-Up 1976-77, 1983-84.

UEFA Cup Winners' Cup Winners 1984-85.

FA Youth Cup Winners 1965, 1984, 1998.