LifeBogger presents the Full Story of a Football Manager best known by the Nickname; ‘The Tragic One’.
Our version of David Moyes’ Biography Fact, including his Childhood Story, brings you a full account of notable events from his childhood time to date.
The analysis of the Legendary tactician involves his life story before fame, family life and many OFF and ON-Pitch little-known facts about him.
Yes, everyone knows about his abilities, but few consider David Moyes’ Biography, which is quite interesting. Now, without further ado, let us begin.
David Moyes Childhood Story – Early Life and Family Background:
For Biography starters, David William Moyes was born in the year 1963 to David Moyes Sr. (father) and Joan Moyes (mother). He is of Scottish origin but was born and brought up in Bearsden, United Kingdom.
As a boy, he grew up supporting Rangers despite playing for Old Firm rivals Celtic. David was known for his hard work and the reliance on a strong paternal influence.
Yet it would be simplistic to regard Moyes’s upbringing as privileged.
It was quite the opposite. In fact, as a child looking on at his father’s determined work with amateur and college football teams, Moyes took on board the core beliefs he has exhibited to this day.
In his words…“I was brought up in a family embedded in volunteer work through my dad’s involvement with Drumchapel Amateurs and as a teacher at Anniesland College, where he ran their team as well,” Moyes recalls. “I used to watch his workaholic nature which i followed.”
He continued…
“My earliest memories are him spending hours on the house phone at night – no mobiles in those days – and it was always arranging times, places, pitches, referees, opposition. It was all planning.
And my mum was washing the strips. She used to moan because it got too much at times for the washing machine in the house. We’d end up taking the bags to the laundrette in Whiteinch on the Sunday after the game.”
David Moyes Biography – Career in Summary:
Did you know?… Moyes’s playing career took him from a 12-year-old at Celtic Boys Club. Here is Young David Moyes.
He turned out just 24 times for the senior team. After a low-key time at Cambridge United, Bristol City and Shrewsbury Town, he returned to Scotland and Dunfermline Athletic.
There, he struck up a close friendship which remains to this day with Ian McCall, himself once regarded as Scotland’s brightest young manager.
“I shared a car with David and Billy Davies from Glasgow to Dunfermline, and we were all very interested in the management side of the game,”
McCall explains. “David was down at Largs [at the Scottish FA’s coaching base] at every opportunity.”
This led to a coaching career connection with Alex Ferguson having his hands in it.
David Moyes Family Life:
The Moyes family football connection remains to this day. Ideally, he comes from a rich family background thanks to his dad’s handwork.
Moyes’ father, David Sr. is a scout at Everton and previously a coach at Drumchapel Amateurs, where Moyes began his career.
His full-time occupation was as a pattern-maker and later a lecturer at Anniesland College in North Glasgow.
Moyes’ mother, Joan, hailed from Portrush in Northern Ireland and worked in clothes stores in Glasgow. David’s cousin, Dessie Brown, is the secretary of the Coleraine Football Club.
David’s brother, Kenny, is a football agent with clients such as Charlie Adam and David himself on his books, while their cousin, Dessie Brown, is the general manager of Coleraine. Below is David Moyes and his look-alike brother, Kenny.
Who is Pamela Moyes? David Moyes Wife:
Behind the successful manager, there is a woman who maintains his heart. David Moyes is married to his childhood sweetheart, Pamela Moyes.
With his wife, he has a daughter, Lauren Moyes, who attended Archbishop Temple School and a son David Jr who went to Preston.
Just like his dad did, David Moyes also named his son (David Moyes Jnr). Below is a picture of his family as they celebrate a trophy at Wembley.
David Moyes Religion:
This happened while he was a player with Cambridge United. Moyes received abuse from teammate Roy McDonough for his religious beliefs. Moyes is known to be a hardcore practising Christian.
McDonough felt that religion was distracting them from focusing on playing; speaking of Moyes, Alan Comfort and Graham Daniels, he said:
“The three of them sat in the changing room with a little black book, discussing their faith when they should have been getting psyched up for a relegation scrap.”
Following a 3–3 draw with Wigan Athletic on 9 March 1985, McDonough, who was 26 years old at the time, states that he “battered” 20-year-old Moyes for not putting sufficient effort into the game.
Roy McDonough is regarded as Britain’s wildest footballer. He was popularly regarded with names like the ‘big fella’ with the moustache, Red Card Roy etc.
The rugged footballer was sent off (Red carded) a record 22 times during his career. They compared him to modern-day Sergio Ramos who has a similar red card record.
We have described him as terrifying, a footballer’s bully, a self-confessed serial boozer and a womaniser. In fact, McDonough’s tale is not for the faint of heart. David Moyes was indeed a true victim of bullying.
David Moyes’ Daughter Story with Wilfried Zaha:
According to WILFRIED ZAHA: “People said I slept with David Moyes’ daughter. I’ve not even met her!”.
David Moyes was fueled with anger as pictures of both Zaha and his daughter Lauren on the bed got released over the internet.
This is the reason why Wilfried Zaha left Crystal Palace for Manchester United in 2013 for £15m. His stay at Old Trafford proved unhappy, with rumours fueling between him and Lauren Moyes.
More so, opportunities were limited. His move away from Old Trafford started with a loan spell to Cardiff before a permanent move to Crystal Palace.
David Moyes Biography – His Gollum Looks:
Have you ever sat there looking at photographs or seen someone on TV and thought to yourself …..
“holy sh*t, this person looks like someone, but who the hell is it?”. This is the case of Moyes, and his Gollum looks.
Some say David Moyes looks like a Gollum. This is because of him having a withered face, big blue eyes, and a horrible gnarly voice all actually point to it.
David Moyes Untold Biography Facts – Accusations:
On 22 May 2014, Moyes was investigated by police after an alleged assault on a man at a wine bar in Clitheroe, but no action was taken by police.
Issue with Rooney:
Manchester United and England striker Wayne Rooney was once sued by his former manager David Moyes over comments made in his autobiography.
The book, entitled My Story So Far, accuses Everton manager Moyes of being overbearing, controlling and ultimately responsible for Rooney’s £27 million transfer to United in 2004 due to his close relationship with Ferguson.
Moyes is reportedly claiming more than £300,000 in libel damages from his former player.
In the book, Rooney claims he told Moyes he wanted to leave Everton after a newspaper revealed he had visited prostitutes.
The footballer goes on to suggest Moyes leaked details of the conversation to the Liverpool Echo newspaper, which led Rooney to leave the club he had supported from childhood.
In the writ issued at the High Court in London, Moyes claimed the allegation had “injured his professional and personal reputation and caused serious embarrassment and distress”.
Moyes went on to issue libel proceedings against the book’s author Hunter Davies and publishers Harper Collins. He has also asked for an injunction preventing the offending passage of the book from being published again.
David Moyes Biography – Once Threatened to beat up a BBC reporter:
Former Everton and Manchester United boss David Moyes have once been fined £30,000 for his “slap” comment towards a female journalist in her interview with him.
Moyes was charged by the FA following a conversation which took place between the Scot and BBC Newcastle and Radio Five Live reporter Vicki Sparks at the end of a post-match interview while he was in charge at Sunderland.
What really happened??… Moyes was unhappy with one of Sparks’ questions and said to her:
“You were just getting a wee bit naughty at the end there, so just watch yourself. You still might get a slap even though you’re a woman. Careful the next time you come in that way.”
The Football Association on Friday said he was guilty of “improper and/or threatening remarks” following the match against Burnley.
Although the interview was over at the time Moyes made his remark, the camera was still running, and footage of the incident was published three weeks later by a national newspaper.
Moyes was contrite about the incident when questioned at a subsequent press conference.
He said: “In the heat of the moment, I made a mistake in my comments to a BBC reporter, which I profoundly regret. I was disappointed with myself for it.
I subsequently phoned the reporter and apologized, which she accepted. It’s not my character, it’s not my type, as most people know, and once again, I apologized for it.”
Sunderland FC described Moyes’ conduct as “wholly unacceptable” but stood by him as he tried to preserve Sunderland’s Premier League status.
Moyes resigned from his role at the Stadium of Light on May 22 following Sunderland’s relegation.
David Moyes Biography – Wanted 600 Passes per Game for United:
That’s a lot. It’s more than Real Madrid managed in 120 minutes of the Champions League final. It’s twice as many as what Holland managed when beating Spain 5-1 at the World Cup.
And it’s about the same as Spain managed in the same match, which shows why Moyes’s target, if true, was such a folly.
And even if he did have a passing target, why tell his team? Unless he wanted them to spend the whole game playing safe backward passes.
Appreciation Note:
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Moyes got a tough job in hand