David Moyes will take charge of his 1,000th game as a manager when his West Ham United side face Genk in Belgium for their Europa League encounter on Thursday night.
The 58-year-old is still going strong after more than 23 years in the dugout and is currently enjoying life in his second spell with the Hammers, who are excelling across all competitions.
Moyes has taken the reins at six different clubs and ahead of the Scotsman's milestone moment in midweek, Sports Mole delve into the archives to look back at the career of one of the longest-serving managers in British football history.
Preston North End: 1998-2002
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It all began for Moyes at the age of 34, when he was appointed head coach of Preston North End on January 12, 1998 – replacing Gary Peters with the Lilywhites in danger of relegation from Division Two.
The following day, Moyes took charge of his first match away at Moss Rose against Macclesfield Town in the second round of the EFL Trophy, and he got off to a winning start win a slender 1-0 triumph.
It took Moyes eight games before securing his first league victory and he eventually steered the club to safety. The following campaign saw Moyes guide Preston to the Division Two title, before reaching the playoffs a year later in Division One. However, they lost the playoff final against Bolton Wanderers, ending their hopes of promotion to the Premier League.
Midway through his third year in charge, Moyes swapped Deepdale for Goodison Park when he replaced Walter Smith in charge of top-flight side Everton in March 2002, bringing his successful spell with Preston to an end.
Games: 234
Won: 113
Drawn: 58
Lost: 63
Everton: 2002-2013
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Moyes took the reins on Merseyside when Everton were hovering just above the relegation zone on goal difference with nine games remaining. The Scotsman claimed all three points in his first game in charge, beating Fulham 2-1 on home soil, and the Toffees then went on to win another three matches, eventually finishing seven points clear of the drop zone.
In Moyes's first full season at Goodison Park, Everton narrowly missed out on European football, though the Scotsman was still recognised for his efforts as he was named LMA Manager of the Year after guiding the Toffees to seventh in the Premier League – the club's best finish for seven years.
The following campaign saw Everton struggle and they finished in 17th place with 39 points, the lowest total in the club's history. However, their fortunes turned dramatically in 2004-05 – the same season Wayne Rooney joined Man United – as Moyes exceeded all expectations, guiding Everton into the Champions League qualifiers with a fourth-place finish in the Premier League.
From 2006 onwards, the Toffees began to display more consistency under Moyes, finishing between fifth and eighth place in each of the next seven Premier League campaigns and competing in Europe on three occasions in the process.
In January 2012 Moyes became the fourth manager – after Sir Alex Ferguson, Arsene Wenger and Harry Redknapp – to record 150 wins in the Premier League, and just six months later became just the second manager in over 25 years to take charge at Manchester United, succeeding the man who hand-picked him for the job.
Games: 518
Won: 221
Drawn: 133
Lost: 164
Manchester United: 2013-2014
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Deemed 'The Chosen One' after signing a six-year contract to succeed Ferguson, Moyes won the Community Shield in his first competitive match against Wigan Athletic, though this triumph proved to be the one and only piece of silverware lifted by the Scotsman during his brief tenure at Old Trafford.
United suffered their worst ever start to a Premier League season, losing to Liverpool, Manchester City and West Bromwich Albion in September 2013. Successive home defeats against former club Everton and Newcastle United followed, which left the Red Devils ninth in the table after 15 games, 13 points behind leaders Arsenal.
At the beginning of 2014, form failed to improve as they were eliminated in the third round of the FA Cup by Swansea City, before suffering their ninth league defeat at home to Man City, a 3-0 loss which caused unrest among supporters and put Moyes under serious pressure.
Following defeat in the Champions League quarter-finals against Bayern Munich, a 2-0 loss on his return to Goodison Park in April proved to be the final straw for United's hierarchy, who decided to sack Moyes after just 10 months in charge.
Games: 51
Won: 26
Drawn: 10
Lost: 15
Real Sociedad: 2014-2015
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Moyes took six months out of management before making a surprise move abroad to take charge of Real Sociedad in November 2014. The Scotsman's managerial debut in La Liga began with a goalless draw against Deportivo, before claiming his first victory against Elche a week later.
His most memorable moment in the Sociedad dugout will have been in January 2015, when his resilient side held on for a slender 1-0 victory against Catalan giants Barcelona.
After finishing the 2014-15 campaign in 12th place, Los Txuri-Urdin endured a poor start to the new season under Moyes, winning just two of their opening 11 league matches. A 2-0 defeat away against Las Palmas in November 2015 was the Scotsman's final game in the dugout before he was relieved of his duties almost a year to the day after taking charge.
Games: 42
Won: 12
Drawn: 15
Lost: 15
Sunderland: 2016-2017
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After uno, dos, tres, cuatro different managerial jobs in his career, Moyes returned to management in the North-East with Sunderland, replacing Sam Allardyce in July 2016 and taking his first Premier League job since leaving Manchester United.
Moyes failed to win any of his first 10 league games in charge, losing eight in the process, leaving the Black Cats rooted to the foot of the table and eight points from safety by the end of October.
A run of three wins in four matches before Christmas gave Sunderland supporters hope of a much-needed revival, however, Moyes could only win three of his next 24 top-flight matches – a miserable run which brought an end to Sunderland's 10-year spell in the Premier League.
As well as being eliminated in the third and fourth rounds of the FA Cup and League Cup respectively, Sunderland finished bottom of the Premier League with just 24 points and Moyes decided to resign the day after the season came to a close.
Games: 43
Won: 8
Drawn: 7
Lost: 28
West Ham United: 2017-2018 & 2019-present
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In November 2017, Moyes was appointed manager of West Ham United, replacing Slaven Bilic with the Hammers languishing in the relegation zone. Moyes's first game in charge was also his 500th Premier League match, but he made a losing start in a 2-0 defeat away to Watford, before claiming his 200th top-flight victory as a manager with a 4-1 triumph against Huddersfield Town.
The Scotsman managed to keep West Ham in the Premier League with two games to spare, however his six-month contract expired shortly after the season finished and he was not offered a new deal. He then returned to the London Stadium in December 2019, following the departure of Manuel Pellegrini and he has since enjoyed one of the most memorable spells of his managerial career.
Moyes had hoped that a thumping 4-0 victory over Bournemouth on his return would get the ball rolling for the Hammers, however they endured a difficult run – during a coronavirus-hit campaign – of just one win in their next 11 games, which kept them in danger of demotion. Moyes, though, managed to turn the club's fortunes around at a crucial period, claiming 12 points in their final seven matches which helped steer the club to safety.
The following season, West Ham went from strength to strength, evolving from potential relegation candidates to European contenders. The Hammers qualified for the Europa League after finishing the 2020-21 campaign in sixth place with 19 victories and 65 points, two club records.
Moyes signed a three-year contract extension with West Ham in June and they have begun the new season brightly, currently sitting fourth in the Premier League table with 20 points from 10 games, as well as winning all three group games in the Europa League.
Games: 110
Won: 48
Drawn: 25
Lost: 37
Oliver Thomas
