Moyes Admits Mood Affected By Uncertainty Over His Future

David Moyes has responded to Everton's humbling in the Merseyside derby by calling on the club's board to finalize his new contract and admitting the delay has spread uncertainty throughout Goodison Park. The Everton manager has been involved in contract negotiations on and off for almost a year and in May agreed in principle to a new five-year deal that would double his salary to £60,000-a-week.

Moyes initially refused to put pen to paper until Everton had secured transfer funds in the summer. Since then he has spent a club record £15m on the Belgium midfielder Marouane Fellaini and signed four other players for mostly nominal fees, but has still not committed his long-term future to Everton due to other financial details in the contract.

Speaking after Liverpool inflicted a third successive home defeat on Everton, Moyes, whose current deal expires next summer, said: "Possibly it is spreading uncertainty through the club, yes, and it is something that needs to be addressed. I think both parties are aware that it has to be sorted, it has to be done, and hopefully there will be some news soon.

"I've been sitting waiting on [a revised contract] coming back from the club for quite a while now. But I am not unsettled by it personally. When the manager's position is uncertain then uncertainty can come into the club but that is not the reason for today's performance or the ones before. I agree it doesn't help."

Moyes returned what Everton officials believed would be the final draft of his new contract earlier this month. When asked if it was up to the Everton board to end the saga by offering an amended contract, the Scot added: "Something like that, yes."

The Everton manager has missed out on about £360,000 in potential wages by stalling on his new contract and his side have made a miserable start to this campaign. Everton, last season's fifth-placed team in the Premier League, have not kept a clean sheet all season, exited the Carling Cup at Blackburn last week and travel to Standard Liège in the Uefa Cup on Thursday needing to overcome a 2-2 home draw in the first leg to reach the group stage.

"It's my job as manager to get the players performing," Moyes said. "We've not played well at the start of the season. I am fully aware of that and doing everything I can to try and correct it."

Everton are likely to be without Tim Cahill for three league games after he was dismissed for a challenge on Liverpool's Xabi Alonso on Saturday, though Moyes has asked the referee, Mike Riley, to reconsider his 80th-minute decision.