03 February 2023 , 16:00
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Sean Dyche admits he's a 'Marmite' manager because his reputation is not to everyone's taste.
Not only do I think he will become flavour of the month and keep Everton up this season, but I hope he gets the chance to prove he can build a side capable of expansive football.
I can't think of a current manager who has attracted more snobbery than Dyche. But at the so-called People's Club, I believe he will become a man of the people. It's a mystery why big clubs were so reluctant to take a punt on Dyche after he took Burnley into Europe on the smallest budget in the Premier League.
If he had swapped jobs with Pep Guardiola, I would have expected Dyche to win the title with Manchester City's squad at his disposal – but I'm not sure Pep, one of the greatest managers of all time, would have kept Burnley up with the same set of Clarets players.
On his first day in training at Everton, it was interesting to see Dyche immediately installing high fitness levels as a priority by putting the squad through punishing bleep tests.
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He has also insisted on players wearing shinpads, match socks and shorts in training to replicate the 'feel' of matchday kit.
Although Everton were the only Premier League club who didn't sign any new players in the transfer window, while £45m Anthony Gordon left for Newcastle, Dyche insisted: “There is quality in this squad, but we have to make them shine.”
Do you agree with Robbie? Will Sean Dyche keep Everton up this season? Comment here
Sean Dyche made his Everton players undergo a bleep test in his first training session (Tony McArdle/Everton FC via Getty Images)He could not have asked for a tougher start than facing leaders Arsenal this weekend, but I have always liked the way Dyche makes effective football, not just pretty football, his priority.
Everton sacked Frank Lampard and changed managers because they need results. Staying up is all that matters now – they won't get any extra points for artistic merit – and I believe they have landed the right man to deliver salvation.
Much as I felt sorry for Frank, after Richarlison was sold and not enough firepower came through the door to replace him, results suggest he was not getting the best out of the remaining group.
Dyche knows he was not first choice to succeed Lampard, and that former Leeds coach Marcelo Bielsa was flown in to discuss terms before he turned Everton down.
That might be a blessing in disguise because these players might not have been able to produce the expansive 'murderball' Bielsa preaches.
And to doubters among the Everton fans, I would invite you to look more closely at Dyche's record. In his first job at Watford, he finished 11th in the Championship with a poor squad made up largely of cut-price deals and journeymen.
He won promotion with Burnley, went down but bounced back at the first attempt, and he kept them in the Premier League for another six years without spending more than £15m on a player – which is virtually buttons in today's market.
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Everton have turned to Sean Dyche to save them from relegation (Everton FC via Getty Images)If you are looking for a manager who gets the most out of his players, I believe he's the perfect appointment: Humble, knowledgeable and pragmatic. He will deliver sweat on the jersey, maximise set pieces and demand high standards.
To those who wanted a 'bigger' name, I would argue that Carlo Ancelotti, Rafa Benitez, Ronald Koeman, Sam Allardyce, Marco Silva, Frank Lampard and Roberto Martinez have all had a go in the last seven years – and none has ended the club's 28-year drought without a trophy.
And to those who say Dyche has never worked with world-class elite players, I would argue that staying up is the immediate target – nothing else matters.
For all the discord among supporters and unhappiness with the board, I still think Everton will stay up – and if they do, Sean Dyche will steer them back towards the top 10 next season.