Sean Dyche insists the “noise” won’t consume his team heading into Everton’s Super Sunday clash against West Ham despite the Premier League seeking a 12-point deduction for his relegation-battling side. The Toffees are fighting an ongoing case related to profit and sustainability breaches that could cause a massive blow to their top-flight prospects.
Last season, Everton clung onto Premier League football by the skin of their teeth and early signs suggest their 2023/2024 campaign will be much the same. The Merseyside club is currently hovering above the drop zone having lost six of their opening nine games.
Yet things could get a whole lot worse if they are found guilty of breaching Financial Fair Play regulations with sanctions looming large. Speaking for the first time since the news broke of Everton’s possible points deduction, Dyche took questions from reporters on the topic – and sent a clear message to his players that they can “change the story”.
“I think here I don’t think it needs much fostering,” he said on Friday afternoon. “It’s kind of an ongoing thing. The players know there has been some varying ups and downs and noises around the club for various reasons.
“You don’t want them to get used to it in terms of it being acceptable because you want to change the story, we want to change the narrative, change the feel and it often starts on the pitch.
“We’re the ones that can control that bit and change that bit. There’s been some signs of it but I think the league table doesn’t show what the signs are and that’s the important one at the end of the day. There are signs of what I think are a group that are growing and improving.”
If Everton are sanctioned then they will be forced to start all over again and may even find themselves on minus points. But Dyche doesn’t believe the ongoing hearing will provide much of a distraction for his players as they can only control what happens on the pitch.
“It’s a long-standing situation, so everyone knows it has been hovering around,” he added. “All I speak to the players is the focus on the pitch, controlling the controllables. Why is it anything for them to concern themselves with? It’s better to focus on what you’re doing.”
