David Moyes 'didn't expect' to get Manchester United job, reveals Everton player Leon Osman

The moment Moyes told his senior players about his impending switch to Old Trafford has been revealed

David Moyes doesn't fear losing his job even if Manchester United are knocked out of the Champions League by Olympiakos (Reuters)

Leon Osman has revealed that David Moyes informed his senior players at Everton that he never expected to be offered the job at Manchester United.

The Scot was hand-picked by Sir Alex Ferguson to take the reins at Old Trafford, a position Moyes immediately took but ultimately failed in after he was sacked after 10 months in charge.

His predecessor has since suggested one of the reasons Moyes struggled in the role was that he "hadn't realised just how big United is as a club".

Osman, who has spent his entire career with the Toffees, is due to release an autobiography that the Liverpool Echo are currently serialising. In it he tells of the moment Moyes told his senior players about his move to Old Trafford.

"After it was confirmed, Moyes called six of the senior players to meet him in the Thistle Hotel in Haydock – myself, Nev, Jags, Hibbo, Bainesy and Tim Howard," writes Osman.

"We all congratulated him and told him he had earned a move like that for all his effort and what he’d done for the club. He sat us down and told us it wasn’t planned but that he’d received a phone call from Sir Alex, who asked to meet him and then told him he wanted him to be the next manager of Man United.

"Moyesy looked us straight in the eyes and told us he hadn’t expected the offer. I absolutely believe what he told us. For me, he ran his contract down so it was easier to get offers like that but I genuinely don’t believe he had United on his mind."

Everton midfielder Leon Osman (GETTY IMAGES)

Moyes spent over a decade at Goodison Park and had a team performing at a level, despite a tight budget, that led Ferguson to believe he was the man to replace him at Manchester United.

Yet for all his good work, relations between Moyes and sections of Everton fans has soured following his moves for Marouane Fellaini and Leighton Baines. Osman hopes the situation will change.

"He should be welcomed back to Goodison whenever he wants to come but it’s not the case at the moment and that’s really upsetting. I’m disappointed in it all."