The Everton chief, who found his tactics and buying questioned at the club’s AGM on Thursday, said: “Football is a game where there is always someone out there ready to take your place, and that includes the manager.

“Players should know they have to be ready to perform, that’s the business we are in.”

Moyes admits he is looking for a strong reaction from his squad following the criticism of their abject display in the 4-0 defeat at The Hawthorns.

He said: “I wasn’t happy with the performance, and I told them that after the game. The players have shown me that they understand how I felt and now I am hoping for a reaction against Newcastle.

“But we are in this together, it’s me as well as them and we will take the criticism together. They have responded well, they have looked good in training but what matters is that they take that into the game on Sunday.

“I hope the players prove me wrong and avoid me having to do anything in January.”

Moyes told shareholders that he wanted to buy a new striker in the January transfer window and that there was a need for a goalkeeper to be signed before the end of the season as a long-term replacement for veteran Nigel Martyn.

He said: “We went to West Brom in good fettle expecting a positive result, and we didn’t get it. It wasn’t a good enough all-round performance from us.

“The players have got to show what they can do. They have got to be better in the way they play but more importantly they need to be better in their desire.

“They have to show that it hurt them as much as it hurt the supporters. They have to produce a response.

“I hope there is an incentive now to put things right, and I wish I didn’t have to say it. I would hope we would go into every game in the right frame of mind but now I want us to put on a much better display than last week.

“We’d gone three unbeaten before the West Brom game, but it was the nature of the result. If you go there and it’s a tight game and they just beat you, that can be explained. But in the end we felt we made it far too easy for them to win.”

Moyes has underlined his dissatisfaction with the lack of goals, despite having spent a club record £6m (€8.8m) fee on James Beattie.

He said: “We have forwards we want to start scoring goals. If they all grab four or five before new year we will not have to bring anyone in come January.

“We would only go into the market if necessary, we need to improve on scoring goals but that could be the creative players’ fault. It is not all down on the strikers.”