Everton: Sean Dyche's future being assessed by owners after defeat at Bournemouth

The Everton owners are reviewing the work of manager Sean Dyche and weighing up what steps to take next following the club's loss at Bournemouth on Saturday, Livesport VIP News understands.

New owners, the Friedkin Group, have been making an assessment since the final whistle at the weekend, which left Everton with just one win from their past 11 matches and a point above the relegation zone in 16th.

It is 18 days since the Friedkin Group's takeover and while their initial plan was to bring stability to the club, results have forced them into a review of the current set-up.

Everton have scored the second-fewest goals in the Premier League this season, with their blank at Bournemouth the 11th game of the campaign in which they have failed to score, with the Toffees unable to even register a shot on target at the Vitality Stadium.

Dyche is set to face the media at 4pm on Tuesday when he holds his pre-match press conference to preview Everton's FA Cup third-round tie with Peterborough United.

Livesport VIP' Jamie Carragher:

"The Everton fans have almost had a respect rather than a love for Sean Dyche for the job he has done in terms of keeping Everton up after Frank Lampard. Last season, without the points deduction, they actually would have finished above Brighton.

"But this has been a real-drop off.

"When you think of a Sean Dyche team, defensively fantastic, keep clean sheets and that's how he'll try and keep Everton in the Premier League as he has done in the last two years. but when you defend deep, a lot of your attacking threat is counter-attack. Everton are one of two teams that haven't scored a goal on the counter-attack this season.

"There's definitely a divide with Everton supporters and the divide is do they want Sean Dyche to leave right now?

"I think the other half of that support probably want a new manager maybe at the end of the season.

"The big worry they've got is if they change manager now, a manager that has kept them up in the last couple of seasons, would they get relegated with another manager coming in? A manager who is out of work, maybe a foreign manager, maybe it's David Moyes - I don't know.

"But what I would say right now is there is another school of thought - it's not just about being in the Premier League.

"Of course, they have to be there with the new stadium next season, but there are still a lot of Evertonians who are looking at it and thinking this is just not good enough for Everton Football Club - 19 games this season, and they've only won three.

"For me, I would keep Dyche in that position because I think it's almost a guarantee [that they will stay up]. The fact that they've got a new stadium coming, it is imperative that they are in this division next season.

"I wouldn't say Sean Dyche guarantees it but I think his past gives you the best chance of staying in the division."

Livesport VIP News' Alan Myers:

The long, snow-laden journey home from the south coast for bewildered Everton fans on Saturday evening was just another kick in the gut for the ever-suffering fanbase as Dyche's side continue to fall closer to the relegation zone.

Dyche's post-match comments had the fans even more worried about the future as the former Burnley boss suggested his side's recent run of one win in 12 games "doesn't look bad on paper, if there had been a few wins".

Of course the Blues boss was referring to the number of draws in that run and maybe if some of those had been turned into wins. But right now the Everton fans don't want to hear that, they want results and they've had enough.

However, more importantly, new owners, the Friedkin Group, don't want to hear it. They took over the club just before Christmas and did not want to have to deal with this situation so quickly in their tenure. They had hoped for some stability, a rise up the table to relative safety, which would then allow a more measured evaluation at the end of the season.

My understanding is an assessment is now being made and has been ongoing since the final whistle at the Vitality Stadium, looking at the manager's performance, and what next steps to take.

TFG have shown at Roma that they will not shy away from making the big decisions, and how they deal with this situation will give a clear indication to the Everton fans on how they mean to go on.

The club has been in a state of paralysis over the last two years due to the whole takeover saga, and although much good work has been done behind the scenes there is a huge job still to do to begin the process of bringing that much.

Dyche himself has had a lot to deal with, more than most managers in the Premier League, with points deductions, huge financial restrictions, a change of board and numerous other factors and he's fronted every one of those issues.

However, he knows results ultimately dictate whether you sink or swim as a manager and frankly the results have not been good enough. Everton are facing a relegation battle once again and as they head to a new stadium next season going to the Championship is just not an option for the new owners.

So what is likely to happen should TFG decide to change the manager? I believe they will want somebody who is ready and waiting to take the job. They haven't got time for negotiations so I would see a short-term option for the FA Cup game against Peterborough on Thursday, with a more permanent solution being ready to face Aston Villa at Goodison Park for the next Premier League fixture.

Former manager David Moyes said last week that he would not be interested in going to a club in a relegation fight, so that looks a non-starter.

Graham Potter is a name that has been mooted for a while now, he's been strongly linked with the job and would fit the criteria. It certainly wouldn't surprise me if he was the frontrunner, if the Friedkin Group push the button on Dyche.

Whatever happens, the next few days are likely to be eventful at a club which has had more events than an 18-30's holiday over the last few years!

Livesport VIP News reporter Vinny O'Connor at Goodison Park:

"The new Everton owners have to look at the situation they find themselves in at the moment. It's just three Premier League wins all season and Dyche will accept that he has to prove himself once again.

"By proving himself, that means getting results and, at the moment, Everton are getting them because they are just a point above the dropzone at present. It makes sense that the owners are therefore assessing the situation.

"Don't forget, Dyche will have credit in the bank because of what he's been able to achieve in his time at Everton - keeping them up in 2023 during that final-day victory over Bournemouth.

"Last season, Everton finished on 40 points and that was after an eight-point deduction because of the PSR breaches that they had incurred as well. He did that against the backdrop of off-field distractions regarding the takeover.

"Ideally, what the Friedkin Group wanted to do was get through to the end of the season and have a period of stability after completing that takeover, and then make an assessment and judgment as to the way forward.

"Dyche, his management team and the sporting director Kevin Thelwell are all out of contract at the end of the season.

"That would then be the perfect time to make a decision but because of how the results are at the moment and because Everton are being dragged once again into a relegation battle, the Friedkin Group are being made to look at the situation a lot sooner."

Everton's major problem this season has been goalscoring. They have the second-lowest total for goals scored in the Premier League this season, with their tally of 15 only more than that of rock-bottom Southampton.

Their shot-conversion rate is below seven per cent - but it's not just their finishing that's the issue. They also rank lowly for the number of shots they're having and quality of chances they are carving out.

Those issues have been particularly apparent over the past two months - since the start of November, Everton have scored just once from open play. They've also failed to score in eight of their 10 Premier League matches in that time.

In total, they've failed to score in 11 of their 19 matches this term, the worst record in the division.

Their defeat at Bournemouth was the second time this season they've failed to even have a shot on target - again, the worst record in the Premier League.

Alarmingly for Dyche, Everton's points return so far this season - with just three wins from 19 matches - is comparable with the starts made to the 2021/22 and 2022/23 seasons by his predecessors Rafa Benitez and Frank Lampard, who both went on to be sacked at around this stage of the campaign.