If Sean Dyche thinks one of his players has gone down easily at Finch Farm he simply tells them to “get up”.
The Everton boss, who upon his appointment immediately banned snoods and insisted players wore shin pads in training, suggested he had little tolerance for what he viewed as “gamesmanship” during practice sessions. His comments came as he reflected on the red card received by Abdoulaye Doucoure for raising his hand to Harry Kane’s face in the draw with Tottenham Hotspur on Monday.
Dyche described the incident as “a big drama over nothing” - but joked he was worried when the striker was then checked for concussion. He also sought to highlight the disparity between the reaction to that incident and the shocking lunge on Michael Keane that earned Lucas Moura an early bath.
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Doucoure’s red card was the flashpoint of Everton’s draw with Spurs. While most observers have acknowledged the midfielder could have little complaint over being dismissed, Kane’s theatrical reaction has attracted controversy. Dyche, who has accepted Doucoure’s red card was inevitable after he raised his hands, described Kane as a great professional and stressed he did not view his antics as cheating.
Speaking ahead of Everton’s tie with Manchester United, he added: “The strange thing about football, the following of football, the rules and the governing bodies is that on one night you have a player [Keane] who, in theory, is very close to getting a broken ankle and nothing is said, and another [Kane] gets a broken eyelash and it’s like the world is going to end. But that’s society and how things have changed.
"It was pretty much nothing, but football has changed. I certainly can’t change it back again. I’ve been saying for years that there is an undercurrent of fans who are like: ‘Oh come on, really?’ and just want to get on with the game, but everyone has become so precious haven’t they? The rules are so precious, in society as well as football.
"I’m 51 with two kids and I’ve seen the rules around their lives change. Football just mirrors society in that respect. It was a big drama over nothing, although I was worried when they concussion tested him though. I thought: ‘Wow, this could be a close one’.”
Dyche referred back to his own playing days as a centre back in the 1990s and said his teammates would have ridiculed him had he reacted as dramatically as Kane did to the limited contact he was subjected to. He said: “They’d have laughed at me. But now they don’t. It’s interesting that managers get asked this question – and I’ve not problem with that – yet players don’t.
"I just think the in-house view of things is strange in football now. I’ve been on about it for years. Millions of kids see footballers cheat every week, diving all over the place, and no-one says a word. Someone gets flicked in the eyelash and it becomes a big situation. That’s just the way it is now. Come on. I don’t remember Michael Keane being down for too long. That could have been really nasty by the way.”
Dyche insisted he viewed Kane’s reaction as gamesmanship and not cheating and stressed his comments were about the state of football in general. He added: “Just to be clear I’m not talking about individuals here. I don’t think for one second that Moura meant it but he could have hurt him. Equally, and this isn’t particularly about Harry Kane, if someone touches you in the face now, you go down.
"I know I joked about it but it is worrying to me when I see the physio concussion testing him after that. Really? Come on. And that’s not about being a football manager, it’s just being human. If lads go down in training here I do tell them to get up. I have my own authentic standards.”
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