Simon Jordan admits he has changed his mind over Burnley boss Sean Dyche, telling talkSPORT (11 May, 10am) Crystal Palace should view the Clarets manager as a Roy Hodgson replacement.
Has this gravel-voiced gaffer taken Burnley as far as he can?
That’s the discussion everyone seems to have year in, year out. And, after the Premier League’s most unfashionable club secured a fifth successive season in the top flight via Monday’s 2-0 victory over Fulham, Dyche’s future at Turf Moor is once again the subject of debate.
The same questions are being asked at Selhurst Park with just a fortnight of the season remaining.
Roy Hodgson will turn 74 in August and is out of contract in a matter of weeks. Do the Eagles stick with a man who almost guarantees safety or do they twist?
The Athletic reports that, should the oldest manager in Premier League history walk away from Selhurst Park, Dyche is likely to be one of the first names on Palace’s wish-list.
And Simon Jordan, Eagles chairman from 2000 to 2010, admits he has been won over by a man whose charisma, drive, loyalty and ability to turn a limited group of players into a formidable top-flight unit may be the ideal man to take his old club to the next level.
“(Burnley) should be doing everything they can to retain (Dyche’s) services, within the realms of being reasonable,” Jordan says.
“I’ve always looked at Sean Dyche in a certain way and admired the work he’s done. But the more you look at it, you suggest this is one of the best jobs being done in the Premier League by a manager.
“Season after season after season, Sean Dyche produces a team. I’ve been guilty in the past of falling into the trap of (thinking) maybe he’s the (Alan) Curbishley of his time.
“I’m going to throw my club into the mix here – Crystal Palace. I know the rumours were circulating a few years ago that Sean would have been keen to talk to Palace, and now you’ve got a situation where things are up in the air under Roy Hodgson.
“If Palace have got some ambition, (Dyche is) someone who a) keeps you in the Premier League because he’s proven it with Burnley and b) might even kick you on.”
Paulo Fonseca, Patrick Vieira and Valerien Ismael have all been linked with the Crystal Palace job recently.
But after Dyche transformed Chris Wood, James Tarkowski and Ben Mee into Premier League stars, imagine what he could do with an arguably better squad at Selhurst Park.
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