FEEDBACK TO THE FUTURE
Toffees boss gave players questionnaire to find out blunt truth about what’s going wrong... and insists there’s no talk about new stadium move until fight to stay in Prem is won
IT IS easy to understand why the length of Sean Dyche’s contract with Everton went unnoticed, given the drama surrounding his arrival at Goodison Park.
There were major distractions after all. A closing transfer window, no new signings and a fan protest at that news, the club’s best young player, Anthony Gordon, sold, and the appointment of Dyche himself questioned.
Yet quietly, he was given a contract which would see him – in theory – take the Blues into their new stadium for the 2024-25 season.
It is all conditional of course. Rafa Benitez said he wanted to stay around to lead the club into Bramley Moore Dock, so too did Frank Lampard. After eight permanent managers in seven years, the odds are against.
But Dyche took a rather refreshing approach to that question. He knows there can be no talk of the future until the present mess is sorted, no promises can be made to the fans until the fight to stay in the Premier League is won.
That is why he pulled no punches when admitting to the supporters why he and they have just one task at the moment – to keep Everton up.
“Look, I am aware of the longer-term plan, going into the new stadium and all that. But have I looked at their longer-term picture? Not at this stage,” he explained.
“Let’s face up to it, the immediacy of the relegation fight is so important at the moment. That’s my focus.
As long as we get that work done, then we can start looking at and building the bigger picture.” Dyche made clear the fans have a huge role to play in that, with a plea for them to end the civil war which has engulfed the club, amid passionate protests against owner Farhad Moshiri (left) and his board.
Yet he was equally blunt about the role his newly inherited squad must play. There can be no more hiding from them, no more avoiding the grim reality of their situation, and their failure which has placed Everton in that position. And he had a unique way of getting to that blunt truth. He said: “I gave them a sheet with some simple questions on. I didn’t want to lead them anywhere, just the chance to express whatever they thought.
“I just wanted honest feedback. When I’ve done this before, similar themes came back and I said, ‘Right, that is what we have to look at’. If they are telling them to me, then they are things we definitely have to look at. It was very positive, I think only two out of the whole group didn’t respond.
“I need to get to the truth of my players and the position they’re in, and they need to get to the truth of what me and my staff can offer them. And the easiest way was to ask directly.
“So we’ve done that. I spoke at length when I was interviewed about core values. Pride, passion, honesty, trust, these are the things we have to stand for. They’re deemed old fashioned, but they couldn’t be any more modern. That is what we have to stand for.”