Sean Dyche gives his final message to Everton s players as Premier League fate lies in clubs hands

Okay, let's get to what is all set to be a dramatic finale to the relegation battle. Everton, Leicester and Leeds all battling it out for one spot to survive in the Premier League. We've got every single angle covered to that final game of the season. We'll head to Leicester, we'll also head to Allen Road. But first, Vinnie O'Connor has been speaking to Sean Dyche in the last hour. Very good afternoon to you Vinnie. So, Everton in the box seat. It is in their own hands. They can decide their own fate. So, was Sean Dyche upbeat about their chances of staying up? I think it's probably best to say that he's not short of confidence. Since he arrived at Everton Football Club, he's had confidence in this group of players that they had what it takes to get Everton out of trouble. And there have been a few hiccups along the way. But at the same time, they've got themselves into a position where the destiny is in their own hands. And if we look at the league table, obviously we can see that the scenarios are pretty simple. If Everton win, then they are of course safe in the Premier League. Lose, and they then need a scenario where Leicester or Leeds win. And that will mean Everton relegated or a draw. And if Leicester win, it will be Leicester who stay up on goal difference. And if that doesn't happen, then if Leeds were to win and Everton were to lose, Leeds would need to win by three goals to then stay up on goal scored. So, they're the scenarios facing Everton. At the same time, of course, we know that Everton need to improve their home form of late. They haven't won at Goodison Park since the 11th of March. That was the 1-0 victory over Brentford. Since then, there's been the draw against Spurs. And of course, the defeats to the likes of Manchester City. Newcastle, probably you can explain away. But also that defeat to Fulham, which I know was pretty disappointing for everyone connected with the football club, particularly as they got themselves back in it when they equalised to make it 1-1. Going on to lose that one by three goals to one. So, Sean Dyche is well aware of the improvements that Everton have to make. Of course, they've also been beset by injury problems. We know now that Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Nathan Paterson will not be available to face Bournemouth this weekend. At the same time, as I said, Sean Dyche has confidence in the group of players that he has to get the job done. All games are important, of course. But it stands to reason, with it being the last game and what's on it, then of course it's a massive game. I don't really need to emphasise that. I think everyone knows it. I certainly know it. The players know it. The fans know it. So, I think we go into it open-minded to what it is. That's the challenge of being a footballer. What's it like living that situation as well, when you know what's ahead of you like that? Well, things are probably different in the sense I came in here and realised things need a lot of work. I wasn't expecting it to just be an easy run. A lot of these players were here last season in a similar sort of position. So, I think they're aware of it. And I think the club have probably become aware of it, certainly over the last couple of seasons. So, yeah, it comes down to getting a big performance out of a game on Sunday. And Vinny, this game will be played at Goodison Park, where admittedly Everton have been a bit leaky of late. But how important will the fans be on Sunday? Yeah, massive. And we've seen it before. The Everton team is not going to arrive by coach. And certainly they're the arrangements at the moment. And we have seen in the past the kind of greeting that has been when the players have arrived by coach, and trying to gee them up before games. We certainly saw it to have a great impact last season. But it'll be about that atmosphere inside Goodison Park once, or before kick-off, I suppose, when the warm-up is taking place. But then once the game has kicked off. And the other things that we'll be filtering through, of course, are the fact that there will be scorelines coming in from elsewhere. I suppose if there's an early goal for Leicester, an early goal for Leeds, and Everton haven't scored at that stage, then that can create a different kind of atmosphere in there. But you kind of touched on it. And again, I mentioned it earlier, the improvement that Everton have to make in terms of their away form. There had been an upturn in their home form under Sean Dyche when he first arrived. Of course, they've now taken 10 points from a possible 24 at home under Sean Dyche. But as I mentioned earlier, lost their last three. It was one point from their last four at home. And they've not won a Goodison since that victory over Brentford. Meanwhile, of course, the away form has picked up for Everton, which had been a little bit of an issue for them for a long period of time. But it's about getting it right on the day. We know the implications for Everton, certainly from a financial point of view as well. We know as far back as the accounts coming out that there was doubt cast over whether Everton would be able to continue as a going concern. Were they to face relegation? That situation looked to have eased somewhat with a possibility of outside investment coming in in the form of MSP Sports Capital, who signed that exclusivity agreement with owner Farhad Mashiri. But at the end of the day, all the pressure now, whether Everton can sort out the imbalance within their squad in the Premier League or in the Championship, it all comes down to that game against Bournemouth on Sunday. Vinny, thank you very much.