DYCHE ON HIS WAY...

I WONDERED 18 months ago whether the time would be right for Sean Dyche to leave Burnley.

Getting them into Europe was a fine achievement, but it was always going to be difficult balancing that adventure and the Premier League.

He could have taken a sabbatical while his stock was at its highest at the end of last season on the back of that European campaign and come back refreshed for another challenge.

Sometimes you can stay somewhere that bit too long and familiarity breeds contempt, which is what appears to have happened to Dyche (above).

Maybe the board has started to think, “Perhaps we can get better than Sean” and maybe he has thought, “I deserve a bit more support here”.

This summer looks like it could be a natural parting of the ways and, if I was him, I might not even take another job straightaway.

I might do a Sam Allardyce and sit by the phone from October, because there could be some very interesting opportunities coming up around then.