Things are going to start shifting at Everton. Sean Dyche knows this and has expressed that he wants to lead the Merseysiders forward as they leave Goodison Park and move into their highly-anticipated new stadium in 2025.
Dyche will also know that his team’s abject run of form to start the season off needs to change – fast. Crystal Palace head to Liverpool tomorrow afternoon in a contest between two outfits seeking their first Premier League victory of the year. If Everton fail to win, the 53-year-old manager will be sweating over his future in the dugout.
But let’s be pragmatic for a moment – is Dyche really the man to take the club forward, even if he lifts the Toffees away from danger this year?
There’s a case for the negative.
Why Everton should sack Sean Dyche
Sources close to Everton suggest that the club’s stance on Dyche’s role in the dugout remains resolute, even though The Friedkin Group are on the cusp of completing a purchase of Farhad Moshiri’s majority shares.
Dyche is regarded as a manager who enforces an unfashionable and counter-possession style of football, and while this is certainly the case – Everton’s 37% average possession this year is the lowest in the Premier League – his side does like to drive forward.
A lack of possession does not necessarily translate to ‘defensive’ football: Arsenal rank 16th for possession held in the top flight this term with a 41% average.
Further to the point, Everton have created nine big chances in the league this year, ranking joint ninth among a host of divisional rivals. Last year, they ranked 11th with 63 big chances created, more than Manchester United.
So, you see, Everton have a way of working, Dyche has a way of doing things, but that’s not to say at all that he’s not effective, not assured in his system and its parts. Let’s not forget, without the imposed eight-point deduction, the Goodison Park side would have clocked in at a joint-11th-placed finish.
Of course, we’re dancing away from the point that Everton have been in dismal showing this season, and though they’ve managed to showcase some attacking intent in recent matches, taking the lead in each of their past three, the Blues lost against Bournemouth and Aston Villa despite holding two-goal leads and drew at Leicester City after scoring first.
The team clearly has offensive skills to offer, but Dyche’s well-known defensive solidity has slipped and melted into weak and porous. It’s time for change, and West Bromwich Albion boss Carlos Corberan could be the man for the job.
Carlos Corberan would be the dream Dyche replacement
Corberan implements an attractive and high-energy style of football that would certainly bring about a sense of change at Everton, with the promising coach previously touted as a target following Frank Lampard’s dismissal back in January 2023.
Sky Sports commentator Don Goodman has previously said that the Spaniard’s Baggies are “horrible to play against”, with his 4-2-3-1 formation succeeding in shaping his heavy-metal brand.
Having cut his teeth under Marcelo Bielsa at Leeds United, the 41-year-old brings a style carrying a semblance to that of the Argentine, playing fluid and fast football.
His innate tactical understanding and easy-on-the-eye football could see him emerge as Everton’s top target and receive attention beyond that of former Blues gaffer David Moyes and Gareth Southgate, two names that have been linked with the job amid growing questions about Dyche’s leadership.
It could also unlock new signing Iliman Ndiaye, who has been one of Everton’s brightest sparks this season but has a skillset that could perhaps benefit from a shift in manager.
Ndiaye was signed from Marseille for a fee in the region of £15m this summer and he has indeed impressed so far, scoring twice, including against the Foxes last time out to earn Everton their first point of the term.
A technically impressive player, the 24-year-old ranks among the top 2% of positional peers across Europe’s top five leagues over the past year for successful take-ons, the top 12% for progressive passes and the top 8% for progressive carries per 90, as per FBref, emphasising that point.
Matches (starts)
5 (3)
Goals
1
Shots (on target)*
1.2 (0.6)
Accurate passes
81%
Key passes*
0.8
Dribbles completed*
1.8
Ball recoveries
5.0
Tackles + interceptions*
3.0
Total duels won
4.6
An athletic and fleet-footed player, the versatile forward could be perfect in a more attack-focused system, with the roundedness and combative sheen to make it all tick – he might even become Corberan’s main man down the line, as he continues to adapt.
Once described as a “genius” by former Leeds player Romario Vieira, Corberan must be the man to target if Dyche fails to turn things around – Southgate’s tactics didn’t exactly go down a treat for the Three Lions this summer even if willpower dragged them through to the final, while Moyes’ tenure at West Ham came to an end with fans crying out for something new, given his pragmatic approach.
Although Corberan will be immensely proud of the work he has done at the Hawthorns, with West Brom indeed perched in pole position after seven fixtures in 2024/25, he will know that solidified Everton interest could prove to be an opportunity not worth passing up on.
TFG, whisper it quietly, could establish the infrastructure for a brand new world on the blue half of Merseyside – they need to make it happen.
Branthwaite will love him: Everton could appoint "genius" Dyche replacement
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ByAngus Sinclair Sep 27, 2024
