Sean Dyche has provided opportunities to Jarrad Branthwaite and Lewis Dobbin but his honest answer when asked why he had not turned to youth during his times of need may spark concern among Everton supporters
Sean Dyche said he has not delved deeper into Everton’s academy to solve squad issues because he has not yet seen anyone with the clear potential to make the step up.
His comments come after a summer in which some of the club’s brightest young players were sold as part of efforts to relieve the club’s troubled financial situation, one that has had an impact far beyond the first team. Dyche’s comments put into context the difficulties faced at Finch Farm following years of changes in direction at the top of the club’s football operation. When hired two years ago, director of football Kevin Thelwell identified improvements to the structure and culture of the youth teams with a long term plan to build a better pathway from the academy into the first team. Several key appointments that the club hope will lead to long-term progress have followed.
A secondary issue is that the departure of talent has hollowed out the youth teams. Paul Tait’s Under-21s are 23rd in the 26-team Premier League 2 and for much of the season he has had his squad selection hampered by the promotion of important youngsters such as Metcalfe and Hunt to fill the first team matchday bench. As a result, U18s have regularly been moved up to compete in the U21s.
Dyche and Thelwell can point to the progress of Branthwaite as a positive, with both playing an important role in his emergence as one of the brightest centre back prospects in Europe. Thelwell renegotiated his loan deal at PSV Eindhoven last season to improve his game time, sparking a rapid development, and has said he opted to clear the pathway for his progress this summer by not attempting to renew deals with Conor Coady and Yerry Mina.
Dyche could also point to the growth of Dobbin, who scored his first senior Everton goal this season against Chelsea - the same opposition Simms grabbed his only Everton strike against last year, also under Dyche.
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