Every time a Premier League club with more financial might than Burnley sack their manager, Sean Dyche is linked with the job. Now Everton and Leicester are on the hunt for new managers it is no surprise to see his name in the mix once again, having been so successful at Burnley for five years. But does he deserve the chance at a more ambitious club?
The main attraction of Sean Dyche is the fantastic job he was done in Lancashire on a small budget. Despite spending £15 million on Chris Wood this summer, Burnley managed to turn a profit to the tune of around £10 million. Selling key players for big prices and replacing them with cheap but quality players is an incredibly difficult task but one that Dyche has perfected.
He has twice led his Burnley side to promotion from the Championship, winning the title in 2016 and finishing second in 2014. His ability to adapt his side to each individual game is remarkable but his core idea is to work hard for each other and build on a strong defence. In the title-winning season his side conceded just 35 goals in 46 games, scoring 72 at the other end.
Last season, with many pundits backing Burnley to go straight back down as they had done the last time they were in England’s top flight, Burnley silenced the doubters, finishing six points clear of the relegation zone. Dyche was instrumental once again during this season, motivating his players in his preferred 4-4-2 formation to work for the team rather than for themselves.
Burnley’s away from last season was nothing short of shocking. They won just one game on the road which nearly saw them go down, but Dyche has seemingly learnt from his mistakes and corrected that this season. The Clarets have shone away from home this season, picking up eight points out of fifteen available on the road. This included excellent away points at Tottenham and Liverpool as well as impressive wins at Goodison Park and Stamford Bridge.
People wrote of the Chelsea game as a bit of a fluke but the Everton game did raise a few eyebrows. Despite Everton’s woes this season, Burnley passed them off the park, playing a style of play we had rarely seen from a Sean Dyche side. This was highlighted by the excellent goal they scored following a 24 pass move.
So, could Sean Dyche replicate this at a bigger club with more money to spend? His win percentage of 39.7% at Burnley is certainly impressive given he has overseen the club for 229 games. He is in the same category as Eddie Howe of promising British managers who are unlikely to be given an opportunity by one of the top six clubs.
Everton, the team most likely to break into that top six (this season aside), seemingly are also looking abroad for their next manager. This leaves Dyche with a difficult decision. Does he attempt to move to another club to get them a top half finish or does he try and achieve that at Burnley, where he is so admired and respected?
The other option for Dyche could be a move abroad, although British managers have not fared well in recent years on foreign shores. David Moyes time at Manchester United may have been far more damaging for British managers than we could have ever realised at the time. Will one of the big clubs go British again in the next decade?
Sean Dyche has earnt his crust and deserves a go either with more money to spend at Burnley, or at another more ambitious club.
