Ex-Everton star Drenthe lifts the lid on his rows with David Moyes

‘We’d argue and I’d think, “is this guy taking the p***?”‘: Ex-Everton star Royston Drenthe lifts the lid on his rows with David Moyes at Goodison Park… as he admits he DID take friends to the hot tub at Finch Farm in the middle of the night

• Ex-Everton star Royston Drenthe has revealed he had rows with David Moyes  
• The Dutchman said he thought his old manager tried to get under his skin 
• He also admitted that he brought friends to the training ground hot tub at night 

Former Everton star Royston Drenthe has revealed he had rows with David Moyes when he was at Goodison Park and felt the Scot tried to ‘get under his skin’ during his loan spell from Real Madrid. 

The ex-winger had a successful season-long spell with the Toffees in the 2011-12 campaign, playing 27 times and scoring four goals, but while he enjoyed his time on Merseyside, he said he did not always see eye-to-eye with his manager.

Drenthe said he was a ‘different character’ at the time and concedes he could not see that Moyes was trying to help him at the time – but could not get away from a feeling that he was trying to ‘take the p***’. 

‘A lot has been made in the past of my time at the club, and the kind of character I was when I joined, and people know all about my relationship with David Moyes – especially while I was a player at Goodison Park,’ he told Ladbrokes FanZone. 

‘I think back now with a completely different mindset, though; as a 36-year-old, I can understand and appreciate the job he was doing, and how I thought back when I was 25 perhaps wasn’t always right.

Ex-Everton star Royston Drenthe has revealed he argued with David Moyes at Goodison Park

‘Back then, I was firmly of the belief that Moyes was simply out to prove to the other players that he could get under my skin. We’d argue and I’d just think “what the f***?’ ‘Is he taking the p***?”. And while there are certain occasions where I can say I still feel I was in the right, on the whole I’d say he was. 

‘Ultimately, he wanted to get the best out of me as a player, he wanted to help me, I just couldn’t see that at the time. But people change, and I can look back now a lot older and wiser, and I can understand why he did what he did with me.’

Drenthe – who was declared bankrupt in 2020 after a colourful career following stints in Holland, Turkey and the UAE, praised Moyes’ ability as a manager and said he was still showing his talent at West Ham today.

‘I really like him as a manager, too. I think that when he’s given the right club, with the right amount of time, he can do great things. We saw it at Everton and we’re seeing it again, now, at West Ham. 

‘Despite the club being in a difficult position earlier on in the season, he seems to have steered them away from relegation and they’re in a really strong position in Europe. Sometimes certain moves just don’t work out for you, and I think ultimately that was the case at Manchester United. 

Drenthe said he was confused by Moyes’ management style but hailed his coaching ability

Drenthe has often made headlines during his career – and after it – for controversial and surprising turn of events, such as being accused by former Everton keeper Tim Howard of taking his friends to a hot tub at the club’s training ground in the middle of the night. 

Now 36, Drenthe – who has also ventured into acting, rapping and even working at a hospital since retiring from football last year – said the claims were in fact true. However, he insisted that he only took close family and friends and denies any wrongdoing.  

‘Yes, I’ve seen what my former teammates have said about me in the past, notably Tim Howard talking about the time I invited friends to the training ground hot tub in the middle of the night,’ he added. 

‘First of all, I’ll say – this is something which often happens – the real story ended up being blown up massively and turned into something which wasn’t true. Yes, I went to Finch Farm in the early hours, but only ever with friends and family who were coming over to see me; I didn’t see anything wrong with it at all!

The Dutch winger spent the 2011-2012 season on loan with the Toffees from Real Madrid 

He admitted he took friends to the training ground’s hot tub in the early hours of the morning

‘I came to Everton as a 24-year-old, in a new environment, and honestly I felt like a God at the time of my move. So whenever my friends or family came to visit me in England, of course I was going to take them with me! 

‘It wasn’t as crazy as it’s been made out in the past, you know, sometimes I would take a couple of family members, sometimes it would be a group of friends, but nothing too crazy. It wasn’t affecting any of my teammates; no one was there at the time, I just wanted to bring people over.

‘Does it bother me when my former teammates tell these stories? No. I don’t have a problem with any of my Everton teammates, or with what Tim said last year. He’s right; it happened, and I’ve explained why I did it… I’d happily go for a drink with him today if he asked – or any of my other teammates; I only have good things to say about them.’

When Howard originally told the story of Drenthe’s antics last year, he called the former Netherlands international ‘a wrong’un’ and slammed him as ‘horrific’ – revealing he would turn up to training in a Rolls-Royce.

Everton icon Tim Howard called Drenthe ‘a wrong’un’ after revealing the hot tub story last year

Speaking to Ben Foster’s Fozcast, he said: ‘We had some wrong’uns at Everton as well and those are the ones that stood out more than anything. One was horrific, Royston Drenthe. We’re Everton, rolled sleeves up, worker bees.

‘In comes Royston in Rolls-Royces to training, bowls in with his shoes untied, he has to run the perimeter of the training ground because he’s always late, his eyes were half open… you were just at Real Madrid, what are you doing here? This is weird.

‘I guess he’d never heard of CCTV and he ended up coming to the training ground in the middle of the night with friends, and they’re in the hot tub… you’re just thinking “You’re at the wrong club here mate”.

‘Roberto Martinez, who I love, brings in Samuel Eto’o and I was thinking, again, you’re at the wrong club, by the way. With the watches and the cars, I think he’s one of the richest footballers to ever play. But Royston – wow. You could write a book on that.’ 

The former wonderkid admitted in a September interview that he was to blame for being declared bankrupt after losing an estimated £3.2million fortune, saying: ‘I thought I was God… I loved women and partying too much.’ 

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