AFTER 51 LONG YEARS
...Burnley are back in Europe!
THE Arsenal job came and went, the Everton job came and went, the Chelsea job, as usual, came and went.
And one of the best managers the Premier League has seen for some considerable time did not get near them.
Sean Dyche will lead Burnley into their first European campaign in more than 50 years tonight, probably wondering what he has to do to take the next step up.
Not that he is restless at Turf Moor, having signed a new contract that takes him until 2022 and developing the club to such an extent that Burnley, for a change, are not among the five favourites for relegation next season.
But that they are sixth in the bookies’ line illustrates the perennial battle Dyche faces.
Starting with the tie against Aberdeen, he will relish the Europa League journey. In May, he summed up what it meant: “For a club like Burnley to be in Europe in any shape or form is a massive achievement.
“European football at Turf Moor, what’s that all about?
“There’s nothing but positives for me. Burnley Football Club playing European football, I don’t think anyone thought that, certainly not five-and-a-half years ago when I got to the club.
“We’ve worked hard to get here and we’ll look forward to the challenge it brings.”
At the Scottish ground, though, where the reputation of one of the greatest managers was forged, Dyche might wonder if Burnley represents his glass ceiling.
He shares a work ethic, a common touch, a willingness to innovate, probably a temper, an early managerial setback, with Sir Alex Ferguson, whose name and persona will always bestride Pittodrie. Ferguson forged that reputation after being sacked by St Mirren. Dyche was dismissed by Watford before carving a name for himself at Turf Moor.
Yet the chances of Dyche getting the sort of opportunity that came Ferguson’s way at Old Trafford in 1986 are slim. Arsenal went for Unai Emery, Everton for Marco Silva, Chelsea for Maurizio Sarri. There is a pattern.
It could be big clubs are wary of Dyche’s reliance on British and Irish players. He does recruit from abroad although to a lesser extent than most, but has to cut his Burnley cloth accordingly.
It could be big clubs are wary of his style of play. Burnley finished seventh but the seven clubs directly below all scored more than their 36 goals. Again, Dyche has to adapt to the comparatively limited resources available to him.
It could be big clubs are wary of a disciplinarian image – Dyche pretty much outlaws use of social media. However, speak to players he has nurtured and they have nothing but respect and even affection for him. And he has nurtured plenty.
One of the World Cup’s outstanding performers, Kieran Trippier, has spoken repeatedly of the huge influence Dyche had on him. Is it too much to imagine this man of grit, stature and talent will one day be leading England rather than cultivating players for them?
Maybe Dyche needs a landmark result or a landmark run to a trophy, in the manner Ferguson did in the 1983 European Cup Winners’ Cup.
That landmark result came at Pittodrie in March of that year, the Scot masterminding a 3-2 second leg, quarterfinal triumph over Bayern Munich. The landmark run to a trophy was complete when Aberdeen overcame Real Madrid in the final. Perhaps if Dyche, starting his seventh season in charge of Burnley, can take them all the way to the final next May, he will finally get the acclaim he deserves.
And, with the greatest respect to the fantastic football club that is Burnley, the place he deserves is among the managerial elite.
For now, he is satisfied by his and his players’ achievements, while dreaming of more: “I’ve come to understand what it means to a town like Burnley. I’m from Kettering, it’s a similar size. Kettering nearly went out of business a few years ago.
“A team in the Premier League for Burnley, a town of 75,000 people, that’s amazing, and now a team in Europe.”