With the 2023-24 season coming to a close, we continue our season review series with a look at the man who was the face of the club for a long time with the Board and majority shareowner missing, the manager Sean Dyche.
Summary
This season, like the last several for Everton, was not the prettiest at points, to be sure. A dreadful first three matches, followed by a win against Doncaster Rovers, a draw against Sheffield United, and a loss to Arsenal, greeted Blues supporters and players alike.
A big victory against Brentford – followed by Aston Villa in the Carabao Cup – buoyed the squad, and began a run where the side lost only three matches across all competitions from September to early-December. That began an almost indescribably bad run by the team, leaving them without a Premier League victory until April against soon-to-be-relegated Burnley.
The side was then embarrassed at Chelsea, with the fallout so galling that then reeled off four victories in five games unbeaten to save themselves before their final day matchup against Arsenal.
Photo by Dave Howarth – CameraSport via Getty Images
And so, what can be said about Sean Dyche’s performance as boss across the season? The team found no success in either the FA or Carabao Cups, of course, but weathering the battery of PSR sanctions – as well as the slow-moving now-dead 777 takeover – and staying in the Premier League were the most pressing of the boss’s objectives this past season.
With sanctions and penalties seemingly done with, and ownership close to being settled in a much more positive situation than it has been, Dyche – if he’s retained by new ownership – should actually get a proper crack at proving his worth as a boss at Everton; not that he really has to, of course.
In some ways, his season and a half in charge is more impressive than most reigns of that length. He took over a side that was miserable and playing miserable, disconnected football. He saved them from one relegation scrap, and then built on the success even while suffering point deductions and a largely deficient offense.
But runs of poor play and stagnant offensive showings highlighted how even a staunch defensive team still needs some goals. And yet, sanctions and points deductions – in truth – made this another campaign wondering about a relegation scrap.
![Everton v Burnley - Premier League - Goodison Park](https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/_5AciVAAutWRMbli-6I0SaeOSs0=/0x0:4847x3391/1200x0/filters:focal(0x0:4847x3391):no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25514790/2136572549.jpg)
Photo by Peter Byrne/PA Images via Getty Images
While Everton was able to put that discussion to sleep a bit earlier than in the previous seasons, it is worth noting that without the 8 points taken between two separate inquires, the team would have ended up near Brighton, far closer to midtable than to the bottom.
Were this to be Everton’s finishing position, many across the U.K. and Europe would’ve certainly noted the masterful work done by Dyche; as it was not, the boss will simply have to try this next season to earn a bit of respect for himself and his Toffees.
Performance
While the Toffee offense struggled to put up goals, managing only 40 across the entire Premier League season, the defense gave up only 51. Scoring 40 goals to get 40 points is an interesting statistic, but actually getting 48 points from 40 goals – before point deductions of course – shows that there is a lot of good still left to be harvested in the Dyche-Everton partnership; we might presume that, with some offensive pieces and better production, a more successful side will be witnessed too.
Usage
4-4-1-1 was the preferred shape this past season, although it was not of course the only shape played. Supporters watched a 4-1-4-1 in late August against Wolves, a 4-3-2-1 against Brentford in September, and a 4-2-3-1 on 7 December versus Newcastle, as just a few examples, but most routinely, the 4-4-1-1 was employed by Dyche and deployed upon the pitch.
Dyche always enjoys utilizing a shape that can get super dense and compacted with players, and he found joy in this manner with the 4-4-1-1. Allowing for teams to come at them oftentimes, the side would wait for an opportunity to pounce quickly upon a turnover of possession with either a winger or that advanced midfield player – most usually Abdoulaye Doucoure – leading a break the other way.
With better finishing by Everton’s number nines, the side might have seen more finishes and, therefore, more victories. As they were unable to capitalize more on the positive reality of their quite stingy defense, the strategy appeared wanting – such as when the team is now down a goal and cannot so easily rely on baiting another side into some ill-advised decision; such are the downsides of such a strategy, yet there are downsides to every strategy if one looks closely enough.
![Everton Press Conference](https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/8bFHs3uYKTNqsI1bZkrYEIHJDws=/0x0:4941x3294/1200x0/filters:focal(0x0:4941x3294):no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25514791/2150139308.jpg)
Photo by Tony McArdle/Everton FC via Getty Images
Future
The Blues will likely be selling at least one of their more attractive younger pieces this summer, but should they retain either Amadou Onana and/or Jarrad Branthwaite next term, the team will – hopefully – have some money to sign players while maintaining a solid defensive pairing in either the midfield or at the backline.
Should Dyche be returned to the sideline as many believe he will be by new ownership, he will look to maintain defensive cohesion while building on the lackluster offensive production of the past season.
He still has some pressing issues at fullback to resolve, while the Blues attempts at injecting more pace on the wings have so far proved fruitless for Kevin Thelwell this summer.
Another option up front as a number nine will certainly be on the boss’s radar, as will an offensive piece to coordinate and manipulate the pitch from the middle of the side, while more help at the fullback positions would give protection to James Tarkowski and – hopefully – Jarrad Branthwaite.
With some of those bits added, the team will look to build upon what was actually a better season than the table first indicates.
Grade: B+
Dyche has done a great deal with not too much, and that deserves praise. With new ownership, no looming sanctions, and a bit of money to finally spend, Everton might finally get out of the Premier League cellar for the first time in some severe years.
Is he the long-term answer? Well, if the team improves upon the pre- and post-sanctions numbers and underlying stats and data, then he very well might be – and that isn’t something to be frustrated about. There is a chance, after all, that Sean Dyche is actually a pretty good manager.