Football: Moyes poised to sign new deal

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Everton manager David Moyes will finally sign his much-awaited contract extension over the next 48 hours.

The Toffees' dismal start to the season, which has seen them dumped out of both the Carling Cup and Uefa Cup, has been compounded by Moyes' refusal to sign a new contract at Goodison Park despite months of discussions.

The Scot has not helped matters by remaining tight-lipped over the issue, repeatedly refusing to give detailed responses to queries about his future but he has now finally moved to quell the rumours and says a new deal will be signed "before the weekend".

He said: "I have always said I am staying put.

"It may not be signed today but it certainly will be in the next few days.

"The lawyers are working through things just now and over the next day or two, and maybe before the weekend, I will be able to say I have signed at Everton."

Moyes vehemently denied the recent reports that senior players argued with him about his future following last week's dire 2-0 defeat to local rivals Liverpool.

It has been suggested that Moyes was questioned by members of his squad over his reluctance to sign a new contract but the manager rejected such claims and said he did not believe the issue had affected his team.

"When footballers cross the line it doesn't affect them, it is 11 v 11 and I have already been saying that my future is at Everton and this is where I want to be," he said.

"People who write or talk about it don't understand if that's what they think players do.

"All it does is give talk or credence to why we are not doing well.

"The reason we are not doing well is because we are not playing well enough and my job is to make us do better."

Everton will face Newcastle on Sunday without Tim Cahill following his red card in that 2-0 defeat to Liverpool and Moyes openly expressed his disappointment at the appeal panel for not overruling the decision.

For a man already on a Football Association improper conduct charge following his own sending-off at Stoke last month, Moyes was remarkably bullish about the make-up of the panel, accusing the FA of appointing under-qualified people to oversee the ruling.

"Not having Tim is a big setback," Moyes admitted.

"I think it was wrong, we went to the appeal and I was hoping to have the names of the guys on the appeal panel for you but I forgot to bring them down.

"They are all well-known people as you can imagine," he sarcastically added.

The lost appeal means Cahill will be missing for the next three Everton fixtures but Moyes still believes the decision was incorrect and was in a belligerent mood when discussing the Soho Square officials responsible.

He said: "It wasn't a tackle that was warranting a red card, there is no doubt about that.

"We want to give respect back to the referees and we want to do that as much as we can but the FA put up a panel who not one person in this room would be able to name one member of, so the FA has to give the respect back and put people on the panel who are correct."

Moyes believes those in charge of disciplinary matters should have some experience of the game at the top level.

"You would hope there's an ex-referee on it and maybe someone from the football side, maybe even an ex-manager," he added.

"Maybe it is a one-way street this respect thing, maybe it is not coming from the FA at all, maybe it is just coming from the clubs.

"On this occasion you would have to say that is possible. They are acting as if it is a one-way street."