Sean Dyche is not a particularly well-liked figure among the Everton faithful.
Dyche’s time at Everton ended on a sour note, with the team slipping into another relegation battle before David Moyes stepped in during January 2025.
His style of football was hard for some fans to watch, with his teams often set up in a defensive and pragmatic manner.
But now managing Nottingham Forest, Dyche does deserve some credit for parts of the work he did, and Tony Bellew has been quick to point that out.
Sean Dyche’s ‘unreal’ feat at Everton, according to Tony Bellew
Bellew believes Dyche does not get enough recognition for what he achieved during the 2023/24 campaign. The Toffees faced a points deduction that season and still managed to stay clear of the drop under his watch.
“And I’ll tell you something, now what Sean Dyche did at Everton when we got deducted, those 10 points should never be overlooked,” he said on The Good, The Bad & The Football podcast.
“Because if it was to stay in the Premier League when those 10 points got deducted and they made an example of us, I don’t think any manager at that stage in the world could have got us out of trouble. It was unreal.”
Dyche deserved credit for how he handled things early on, but over time it became clear that his approach was starting to hold the team back.
James Garner has even mentioned how tough it was to develop under Dyche’s set-up, which is part of why he has looked so much better since Moyes took over.
Sean Dyche given warm reception upon return to Everton
When Dyche came back to the Hill Dickinson Stadium in December, he was actually greeted quite warmly.
Several Toffees fans applauded as he walked into the stadium, though his reception was not quite as positive during the reverse fixture at the City Ground.
After Thierno Barry scored the winner, some fans started chanting: “You’re getting sacked in the morning.”
Clearly, opinions on Dyche remain divided, especially given how much progress has been made under Moyes.
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