• “I said when I left here it was another chapter finished for the club and me,” said Dyche. “I have huge respect for the club, the people around the club and the fans.”
• The victory would have tasted even sweeter in front of the watching Burnley chairman Alan Pace, who made the final decision to part company with Dyche 20 months ago.
Image: /FILE
Sean Dyche had said there was no room for sentiment on his return to Burnley and he meted out some punishment to his old side.
The tough, no-nonsense manager saw his near decade-long tenure at Turf Moor end on a sour note by being sacked in April 2022.
But on Saturday he left the ground smiling after his Everton side emerged victorious with a 2-0 result to move seven points clear of the relegation zone, leaving Burnley in huge trouble, six points adrift of safety.
“I said when I left here it was another chapter finished for the club and me,” said Dyche. “I have huge respect for the club, the people around the club and the fans.”
Dyche was in charge of Burnley for 425 games, securing two promotions from the Championship and taking the club into the Europa League.
Such is Clarets supporters’ affection for him, he has a pub called the ‘Royal Dyche’ named in his honour standing close to the stadium and he was afforded a warm ovation before kick-off.
Dyche joked he would be popping in for some pints after the game, and he would enjoy sipping his choice of beverage after an impressive return to his old ground.
The victory would have tasted even sweeter in front of the watching Burnley chairman Alan Pace, who made the final decision to part company with Dyche 20 months ago.
It has not been plain sailing at Everton, with Dyche just keeping the side up on the final day of last season — and there were some calls to sack him after a 2-1 home defeat by Luton in September.
But such has been the turnaround in results, Everton supporters took pleasure in chanting his name as they cruised to a fourth consecutive league victory.
Dyche said of his welcome back at Turf Moor: “That is a nice thing, you want to be successful as a manager, whatever that is in real terms. The success here wasn’t just winning games and being in the Premier League; the whole club changed. That is a massive success for so many involved.
“That is a nice thing, to enjoy that moment. It is a rare one when managers get respect - hopefully from the Evertonians, but also from the Burnley fans.
“I saw Alan [Pace] this morning at the hotel we are staying in and said hello. Football is a weird business. I am not throwing my dummy out, I have done my bit, shook his hands and crack on.
“I met Vincent Kompany at the end of last season and told him how impressed I was. We can moan about everyone and everything, but people have a lot on their plate.”
Former England goalkeeper Paul Robinson said on BBC Radio 5 Live: “He wants to come here and prove a point and rightly so. He did great things here on a limited budget and probably thought that the way he left was undue.
“We saw the reception he got before the game. The fans love him here and respect what he has done. Football is a game of highs and lows, this is a low for us now,” was the assessment of one Burnley supporter in the concourses at the end.
Burnley were relegated a month after Dyche’s dismissal and Kompany was appointed as permanent manager as his successor that summer.
The Belgian immediately endeared himself to the Clarets faithful by guiding the side to a return to the Premier League at the first attempt, collecting 101 points on their way to the Championship title — but this season has been one of real struggle.
Burnley lie second bottom and there was discontent from fans at both half-time and full-time with a smattering of jeers echoing around the stadium. Asked about the boos, Kompany said: “It is part of the job. Most important is that we get full support during the game, that is always the case. I have been explaining how unbelievable it is to be at this club and every single day we put in the effort for these guys.”
Ex-Burnley goalkeeper Robinson said: “Turf Moor is not what it used to be under Sean Dyche. Everton have come here and done a job on Burnley. The way that they battle for second balls and work for each other.
“That is what Burnley used to do here and that’s what kept them in the Premier League. And home form is key and they have been nowhere near it at Turf Moor and especially on the road. It’s going to be a long season for them.”