For over two years now, Everton has been a club seeking stability, with the fans no longer craving silverware, but instead content with merely retaining their top-flight status.
Such has been the dramatic shift in standards, the expectations have hit an all-time low following the miserable tenures of Rafa Benitez and Frank Lampard.
However, that is set to be built back up by Sean Dyche, who is slowly returning the feel-good factor to Goodison Park one result at a time.
Last night’s win will have gone a long way towards rebuilding those hopes of attaining silverware, as they took a great stride towards the EFL Cup final by beating Burnley to reach the quarter-finals.
Following that result, in which the 52-year-old tactician returned to haunt his former employers, his post-match interview was typical of a man unafraid to speak his thoughts on the matter.
He was frank and honest in his assessment of a game that his side hardly excelled in, despite the 3-0 scoreline, and as such drew praise from Sky Sports journalist Alan Myers.
Taking to Twitter, he would write: ‘I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, the right manager a the right time. No sugar coating, simple honest stuff.’
How did Everton play vs Burnley?
As noted, it was far from the most vintage display from the Toffees, who were never really forced into doing anything spectacular to score.
The first saw Dwight McNeil’s fine cross meet James Tarkowski, before Amadou Onana poked home from a corner to double their lead. Then, with the match sewn up, Beto would burst down the left flank to produce a real moment of quality, assisting Ashley Young for the third.
And yet, it was the visitors who dominated possession, enjoying 62% of the ball but only testing Jordan Pickford with a sole shot on target. Meanwhile, Everton rained down 14 shots, five of which were on target, and four of which were ruled as big chances, via Sofascore.
His half-time team talk was clearly inspirational though, transforming a sluggish first-half and breathing new life into the clash. It was during the second-half that they truly began strutting their stuff.
A perfect Dyche display, in which they neutralised the Clarets’ minor threats with relative ease, his conduct both on and off the field is drawing more and more praise as he continues to engineer the club’s renaissance.
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