Surprise behind-the-scenes at Everton after Sean Dyche broke promise to £17m player this season

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Sean Dyche has been sacked at Everton and his replacement is already in place with David Moyes returning.

Everton find themselves struggling in the Premier League with a narrow cushion keeping them out of the bottom three.

Position	Team	Played MP	Won W	Drawn D	Lost L	For GF	Against GA	Diff GD	Points Pts
14	West HamWest Ham	20	6	5	9	24	39	-15	23
15	Crystal PalaceCrystal Palace	20	4	9	7	21	28	-7	21
16	EvertonEverton	19	3	8	8	15	25	-10	17
17	WolvesWolves	20	4	4	12	31	45	-14	16
18	IpswichIpswich	20	3	7	10	20	35	-15	16

Moyes has been appointed on a two and a half year deal at Goodison Park and will be all too aware of the expectations from the fans.

It is a quick turnaround for Moyes, who will see his side take on Aston Villa on Wednesday, leaving him with little time to make decisions on his team selection.

There may be a number of players on Merseyside who will relish the fresh opportunity under a new manager.

And there is certainly one who will be pleased to see Dyche depart with Jake O’Brien enduring a torrid 2024/25 season so far.

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Sean Dyche broke Jake O’Brien promise at Everton

Thursday night saw the Toffees seal their first win of the year in the FA Cup with O’Brien starting in a back three under Leighton Baines.

After the game, O’Brien voiced his thoughts after Everton’s sacking of Dyche, with the defender delighted to be back in action.

According to The Athletic, when O’Brien joined in the summer, he was promised to be the understudy to James Tarkowski and Jarrad Branthwaite.

However, that has not exactly panned out to be the case with the Ireland international behind Michael Keane in the pecking order under Dyche.

The decision not to play O’Brien is said to have caused ‘confusion’ and ‘surprise’ to those at Finch Farm.

Coming into the January transfer window, Dyche was open to offloading O’Brien with a number of foreign sides showing an interest.

But it seems as if he could now be offered a fresh opportunity under Moyes.

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David Moyes must utilise Jake O’Brien at Everton

Jordan Pickford has hailed O’Brien as a ‘beast’ of a defender from what he has seen of the Irishman in Everton training.

But the fans have not seen a great deal of the 23-year-old as Dyche opted for his two senior options, even when Branthwaite spent a long period sidelined through injury.

The £17m summer signing, O’Brien, impressed massively in Everton pre-season having scored on his debut against Preston North End with a stunning strike.

But he could not earn the trust of Dyche from the starting XI in the Premier League.

Moyes will want to stabilise things at Goodison first of all, but he must be looking at O’Brien as a real option to take the club forward.