Everton's Premier League Journey Under Moyes: Key Fixtures and Derby Dates
David Moyes will not be eased back into life at Everton. The 2026/27 Premier League fixture list has handed him a season that starts with a familiar grind, spikes with early tests against the elite, and burns red-hot with a Merseyside derby that already feels like a reckoning.
The campaign begins on Saturday August 22, at home to Crystal Palace, under the Hill Dickinson Stadium lights. A new season, a new era, but an old demand: make Goodison’s successor a fortress. For a club that finished 13th last season, the tone of the year will be set quickly.
Front-loaded tests and old ghosts
After Palace, Everton head south to Bournemouth on August 29, before Manchester United arrive on September 5. Three games, three very different examinations of Moyes’ side – physical, tactical, emotional.
The early schedule offers no room for drift. A trip to Tottenham on September 12 and a home clash with newly-promoted Ipswich Town on September 19 round off a month that already looks like a barometer of where Everton truly stand.
October tightens the screw. Moyes takes his team to Hull on the 10th, then welcomes Chelsea on the 17th. Arsenal at the Emirates follows on the 24th, before a journey to Newcastle on the 31st. It is the kind of run that can shred confidence or harden a squad for the winter.
Then comes November, and with it a storyline Evertonians know too well.
On November 7, former manager Frank Lampard returns to the Hill Dickinson with promoted Coventry City. Sentiment will be parked; points will not. Two weeks later, Everton travel to Brentford on November 21.
Derby date with payback
The Merseyside derby lands at the Hill Dickinson Stadium on the weekend of November 28. The fixture list has done more than just drop a rivalry into late autumn – it has delivered a chance for revenge.
Last season’s stoppage-time defeat to Liverpool still stings. Moyes, back in the home dugout, will know exactly what that atmosphere will feel like when the red shirts walk out. This is not just another derby; it is a test of how far, and how fast, this Everton side can change under his command.
The reverse fixture at Anfield is set for January 30. Two derbies, two bookends around the winter grind. If Everton are still in the fight for something meaningful by then, those dates will define the mood of the entire city.
Winter grind and Boxing Day comfort
December brings the usual slog, but with a few fixtures Everton will quietly fancy.
Aston Villa away opens the month on December 2 under the lights at 8pm, followed by Fulham at home on December 5. Brighton away on December 12 and Nottingham Forest away on December 19 keep the miles ticking over.
Then Boxing Day. Sunderland at home. A traditional date, in front of their own supporters, with the chance to turn festive optimism into points. Four days later, on December 30, come the champions-in-waiting or champions-defending: Manchester City at the Hill Dickinson, another 8pm kick-off under the floodlights.
January starts with Leeds away on the 2nd and a quick reunion with Aston Villa, this time at home on the 6th. Coventry away on the 16th and Brentford at home on the 23rd lead straight into that Anfield derby on January 30. No lull, no soft landing.
Spring tests and defining run-ins
By February, the shape of Everton’s season will be clear. The fixtures, however, do not ease.
Newcastle visit on February 6, Leeds follow for an 8pm kick-off on February 10, before Sunderland away on February 20 and Nottingham Forest at home on February 27. These are the games that often decide whether a mid-table season drifts or sharpens into something more ambitious.
March is brutal in its own way. Manchester City away on the 3rd, under the lights again at 8pm. Manchester United at Old Trafford on the 13th. Tottenham at home on the 20th. Three fixtures, three different statements to make.
April offers a more balanced run: Crystal Palace away on the 10th, Bournemouth at home on the 17th, Brighton at home on the 24th. By then, the table will tell Everton whether these are pressure games in a race for Europe, or must-win matches to avoid being dragged backwards.
Final stretch and a trip into the unknown
The season’s closing act begins at Fulham on May 1, before Hull visit the Hill Dickinson on May 8. Chelsea away on May 15 will be no gentle stroll, and Arsenal at home on May 23 could still carry weight at both ends of the table.
Then, on May 30, Everton finish their Premier League campaign away at Portman Road against Ipswich Town, a newly-promoted side that may be fighting for survival, pushing for a miracle, or playing with the freedom of a job already done. Whatever the context, it is a long journey with no guarantee of comfort.
Promoted trio and key dates
Everton will meet all three promoted teams – Ipswich, Hull and Coventry – within their first 10 games, a quirk that gives Moyes an early opportunity to bank points while also facing the energy and unpredictability of newcomers.
The club’s key dates are now locked in:
- August 22: Premier League campaign starts
- January 9: FA Cup third round
- March 21: Carabao Cup final
- May 22: FA Cup final
For Everton, the path is clear. A home opener, an early derby, a winter of hard miles, and a run-in that could turn the Hill Dickinson into a cauldron or a courtroom.
Moyes has his map. The question now is simple: what kind of journey will Everton make along it?
