Relegation-threatened Everton announced on Monday they had appointed former Burnley boss Sean Dyche as their new manager to replace the sacked Frank Lampard.
Dyche, who has agreed a two-and-a-half-year contract, has a tough first match — up against Premier League leaders Arsenal at Goodison Park on Saturday.
The 51-year-old said it was an “honour” to take over at the Merseyside club, who have not won any silverware since 1995.
“I know about Everton’s passionate fan base and how precious this club is to them,” Dyche said in a club statement.
“We’re ready to work and ready to give them what they want. That starts with sweat on the shirt, effort and getting back to some of the basic principles of what Everton Football Club has stood for a long time.
“We want to bring back a good feeling. We need the fans, we need unity and we need everyone aligned. That starts with us as staff and players.”
Everton chairman Bill Kenwright said: “He quickly convinced me that he has exactly the right attributes to make himself a great Everton manager — and a man who could inspire our fanbase.”
Lampard was sacked last week after a run of nine defeats in 12 Premier League matches, with a dismal loss at relegation rivals West Ham proving the final straw in his troubled reign.
Languishing second from bottom of the Premier League, Everton are battling to avoid playing in the second tier of English football for the first time since 1954.
Former Leeds manager Marcelo Bielsa had also been in the running to become Everton’s eighth permanent manager since Farhad Moshiri took ownership of the club in 2016.
Track record
Dyche, who also previously managed Watford, was sacked by Burnley last April before the club’s relegation from the Premier League.
He was sometimes criticised for his style of football at Turf Moor but over-achieved on a tight budget during his 10-year reign, leading them to promotion from the Championship twice and keeping them in the Premier League for several years.
Dyche also guided Burnley to their first European qualification in half a century after a seventh-place finish in the 2017/18 season.
In a sign of the turmoil enveloping Everton, club directors were earlier this month ordered to stay away from Goodison Park due to perceived security risks.
Hampered by the sale of Brazil forward Richarlison to Tottenham in the close season, Everton have managed only three wins in 20 league games this term against a backdrop of mounting fan fury.
There have been widespread protests against the board at recent games.
Supporters staged a sit-in demonstration after the recent loss to Southampton, with Everton defender Yerry Mina and team-mate Anthony Gordon confronted by fans when they left Goodison Park in their cars.
Former youth-team player Gordon, 21, joined high-flying Newcastle on Sunday for a fee that could reportedly rise to £45 million ($56 million).
Responding to Lampard’s sacking last week, Everton fans’ group NSNOW called for Moshiri to “stop the rot”.
“Nothing tells the story of Everton’s mismanagement under the current owner and board more than the fact we now need to appoint our eighth ‘permanent’ manager since 2016,” the statement said.
“The chaos and dysfunction within Everton’s leadership has got us into this position. The owner needs to take urgent and radical steps to stop the rot. Or sell to someone who will.”
Majority shareholder Moshiri last week said he was not walking away from the crisis-hit Premier League club but the British-Iranian businessman is seeking outside investment to help fund the completion of Everton’s new 53,000-capacity stadium.
