Everton had a January to forget but the one signing they did make could prove to have been one of the most important deals of this Premier League campaign.
From the return of the World Cup, the season went downhill. The slip that preceded the unprecedented break turned into a landslide and the Blues crashed through crises - on and off the pitch - on their way into the bottom three.
No new players arrived and this was a month of just three goals and four defeats, the form sadly ending the relationship with Frank Lampard that had proved so strong and, at times, looked so promising. But in his replacement, Everton have given themselves the best chance of salvaging survival from the wreckage.
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Sean Dyche’s appointment was neither as quick nor straightforward as it could have been. As with so much of the circus around Everton over recent times, there was drama and uncertainty - from Marcelo Bielsa crossing the Atlantic to essentially pitch for Paul Tait’s Under-21s job to Dyche starting work at Finch Farm days before he could officially be called Everton manager.
But for the rollercoaster ride that was a week in which the world knew of both one manager’s exit and his replacement’s arrival long before the public confirmations could be signed off, it deserves to be acknowledged that Everton appointed the right person. And in contrast to the chaotic world he has entered, Dyche appears the type of boss capable of steering through - if not outright avoiding - unnecessarily choppy waters.
To see him in action at Finch Farm is an experience. The power lies in the manager’s hot seat and in an environment that involves so much of what he would dismiss as ‘noise’, he is adept at not letting external narratives sweep away his agenda. On a personal level, his refusal to get too elated over a win or deflated over a draw is completely sensible and understandable. On a professional level, as a reporter tasked with getting his reaction, it makes life harder. It is a good thing for Everton though and that is what matters.
On the pitch… well. We can all see that Everton are competitive. There are limits to what this group of players can achieve and there is no easy fix to this season. Yet it is clear Dyche is creating a dynamic that gives Everton a chance of staying up. That looked barely plausible a few weeks ago and in a relegation battle that will ebb and flow, in which a position of 15th can turn to one of 19th in the course of 90 minutes, and with a tough run of games coming up for Everton, that is worth bearing in mind.
If Everton end up in the bottom three for the international break then, as painful as that will be, there will be some comfort in Dyche having 16 game-free days to continue his work at Finch Farm. He made Everton capable of beating top of the table Arsenal after five official days in the job. Six weeks of work boosted by 16 extra days makes the return against Tottenham Hotspur less daunting than it may have once felt. In fairness to Lampard, his Everton side should have avoided defeat at the London Stadium, and could have won.
Assessing the impact of Dyche is pertinent now, as opposed to during the break, because of what has happened at Selhurst Park. Crystal Palace’s decision to part ways with Patrick Vieira follows the fall of another club into the relegation battle. A few weeks ago there was a hope among those already in trouble that Nottingham Forest and Palace could get drawn into the chaos. Now they have and Everton could benefit due to the 10 points earned under Dyche so far.
Those points have meant a side that has only narrowly avoided being bottom on several occasions is now just a few points from 12th. Perhaps more poignantly, a managerless Palace would surely be looking at the appointment of Dyche right now, should he have remained available. He would not have been, of course, because one of Southampton or Leeds would have taken him off the market.
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