Sean Dyche insists he isn’t expecting a warm welcome when he returns to Burnley this weekend, but the Everton boss feels he has earned the respect of Clarets supporters.
Dyche spent 10 years at the helm at Turf Moor, leading them to a club record seventh place Premier League finish, European football and two promotions from the Championship. He is so revered at Burnley that there is even a pub named after him near the stadium.
He left the club shortly before their relegation in 2022, but having turned Everton’s fortunes around following three straight wins over Nottingham Forest, Newcastle and Chelsea, he insists he won’t be too concerned about the reception he receives on Saturday evening.
“That’s up to them, we’ll see, but I don’t expect anything of anyone,” said Dyche when asked about how he thinks the crowd will react to his return. “But I think I earned the right (to be respected) with the Burnley fans and I think I’m beginning to earn the right with the Evertonians.
“I think it takes time, I’ve always believed that. I’m willing to earn it, I’m willing to put the hard yards in myself. I don’t just ask it of the team, but we’ll wait and see.”
Dyche watched from afar as Vincent Kompany led Burnley back to the Premier League last season, and was impressed with the job the Belgian did. Burnley have struggled in the current campaign though, and currently sit in the relegation zone with eight points from 16 matches, five behind Everton following the latter’s points deduction.
“They had a fantastic season last season and I saw Vincent at one of the LMA (League Managers Association) dos and commended him on the work that they’ve done,” continued Dyche. “They’ve spent money, but how do you buy players who are game-ready for the Premier League? It’s not easy.
“Then you’ve got to develop. You’ve got to mould it, you’ve got to form it, you’ve got to produce a team that can win. It’s a massive challenge for anyone going up and I’m told from colleagues who are in the Championship that the gap’s got bigger. It’s even harder to make that jump.”
Everton’s three successive wins have seen them pull clear of the relegation zone, and if they hadn’t been deducted 10 points they’d currently sit 10th.
“The form was good before, but it’s about winning and that really comes down to taking your chances,” said Dyche. “We have done that in these games recently. We’ve created a lot and we’ve taken them, and we’ve kept clean sheets.
“So that’s the mixture every football manager and every player should want. We’ve got to keep working hard to get that to continue.”
The Everton boss joked that however Saturday’s clash goes, he hopes to still find time to pop inot ‘his’ pub. “I’ll pop in my pub obviously,” he said. “People think it’s mine but it’s not!”