‘TOP BOSS’ DYCHE
THE trouble with doing well in football is that it frequently goes unnoticed.
Often you need to be in crisis or relegation trouble to become the focus of the story.
But, this season, one of the best success stories of all in the Premier League has been Burnley and Sean Dyche.
Quietly, albeit in a gravelly voice, Dyche (below) has gone about his business and guided Burnley, against all the odds, to safety.
They have hit the magical 40-point mark and, if you know Burnley, then that must be seen as a huge success.
Turf Moor is a brilliant step back in time, a fantastic old football ground, which whips up a brilliant atmosphere, but it is also a stadium with a capacity of just 22,000.
Burnley were promoted last season, run on a conservative budget and with small gates. And for the Clarets to survive this season is a fantastic achievement. It truly is.
Dyche has built a team, based on home form, which has seen them win 10 games at fortress Turf Moor, and that has been the foundation of their survival plan.
And it has all been about survival because this is their third season in the Premier League, but the first time they have survived and they have learned valuable lessons from the past.
Arguably, the most impressive part was Dyche keeping the majority of the team together after relegation two seasons ago.
Straight back up, stronger and wiser for it, they quickly gave themselves confidence that this time would be better, particularly beating Liverpool at Turf Moor early on. They have also beaten Everton, Leicester and drew with championselect Chelsea. They are a match for anyone. Dyche is adamant that their defensive kingpin Michael Keane (top) is not necessarily leaving this summer, but, if he does go, then they will lose one of the best English centre-backs around.
Since being capped by England, Keane has gone up a level and he is now in the £30million-plus bracket.
Dyche has handled difficult situations well – the Twitter storm around Andre Gray and Joey Barton’s betting ban – and with strength.
There are some strong candidates for Manager of the year.
But, based on resources and expectations, Dyche deserves to be right up there.