Sean Dyche branded it his biggest achievement in football to date and players took to social media to thank supporters for sticking by the team after Everton beat Brentford to achieve mathematical safety from relegation.
Idrissa Gueye’s solitary goal after an hour of today’s game at Goodison Park was enough to beat the Bees and register the Blues’ third successive victory and clean sheet in the space of six days following the wins over Nottingham Forest and Liverpool.
It left Everton 11 points clear of the bottom three with three games to spare and released the pressure on the club as a whole after two-and-a-half years existing under the threat of dropping out of the top flight for the first time in seven decades.
The Toffees had a close call with relegation after Rafael Benitez’s reign unravelled in predictable fashion and Frank Lampard did enough to keep the Toffees in the Premier League with a game to play in May 2022 but last season, after Dyche was brought in to replace Lampard, the battle to stay up went to the final day.
This month, the manager and his side responded in ideal fashion to the huge set-back at Stamford Bridge 12 days ago when they were thrashed 6-0 by Chelsea, winning three on the bounce which completed their escape from the jeopardy they were placed in by two different points deductions handed down by the Premier League for PSR breaches.
Dyche referenced the uniquely challenging circumstances placed on him and his players by the League’s sanctions that were layered on top of a small squad and crippling financial constraints in his post-match comments.
“It feels very good coming off all the knocks we have had this season,” he said. “We haven’t been given anything and I am super proud of everyone involved – including myself, by the way.
“And the reason for that is this job is not the one that got pitched to me. To focus and refocus on the new job in hand, I am pleased with that.
“The idea was to get us through last season and there would be a more balanced view of the club moving forward. I was not expecting pots of gold, but I was hoping for the chance to change the viewpoint on the pitch and then the view off the pitch.
“It is my biggest achievement to lead a group from where it was to where it is. Last season was tough enough but this season has been incredibly tough.
“There is a long way to go for this club to get back to where it should be. The difference of thinking where this club is and getting there is a huge difference.
“Modern football is not run on perception, it is run on facts. The eight points is the biggest thing.
“You are not going to cry it in when it happens, but what it does is changes the mentality. We were actually doing really well, then we get six and then another two.
“Now imagine they are not there – trust me we wouldn’t have had a run of 13 without a win.
“Everton has become an easy story, the whipping boys of the Premier League. Now we are beginning to change it. Let someone else have the negativity.”
Meanwhile, on Instagram, Ben Godfrey posted his recognition of the achievement: “Against all odds… Safe. Many things against us all season and we stuck together through all of it. Let’s finish strong.”
And James Garner said, “Through thick and thin together.”