Everton’s new signings have a golden opportunity to change the fortunes of one of the world’s most famous clubs.

Royal Blue Column as Everton correspondent Joe Thomas asks Sean Dyche how he is selling the Everton project to prospective new signings

Everton’s new signings have a golden opportunity to change the fortunes of one of the world’s most famous clubs.

That is the vision Sean Dyche is pitching to prospective additions as he seeks to build a squad that can consolidate its Premier League status on a shoestring budget.

It has proved crucial to the arrivals already secured and there is hope it will continue to inspire others before the end of the summer transfer window.

Asked how he had convinced Jack Harrison, Youssef Chermiti, Arnaut Danjuma and Ashley Young to join a club with limited funds and a recent past of consecutive relegation battles, Dyche explained: “I am telling them to be part of a new look to what we are trying to achieve. That is all. Embrace the past, build a future.”

Last summer, the dominant narrative of Everton’s transfer business was the power of then manager Frank Lampard’s reputation. From Amadou Onana to Neal Maupay, James Tarkowski to Conor Coady, each of those additions told me of the impact conversations with one of the greatest players of the Premier League era had on their deliberations over whether to join a club that had just survived a relegation scare.

Dyche’s profile may not be as renowned as Lampard’s but it has been clear this summer that the former Burnley boss does have a pull factor of his own.

When I spoke to Everton’s first summer recruit – former Dyche teammate Young, the 38-year-old told me: “When I played alongside him I knew the way he saw football and the way he played football. He has got a real passion for football and you can see that when he is on the touchline. I could tell that he was going to go into management.

“He’s got that winning mentality, he has got that spark where he walks into the dressing room and everybody knows the manager is in the dressing room. He is a winner and everyone is on board. I think it is a good match, him and the club. All the players are willing to buy into what he has brought to the club.”

I sat at Finch Farm with Arnaut Danjuma just before the start of the campaign, as he explained his decision to commit to Everton over AC Milan. He said: “I deliberately chose Everton this time. I had a chat with Sean Dyche which really hit home to me. I felt comfortable, it felt good, and I think January pushed me close to Everton as well. To let down a big institution like AC Milan is not easy as a football player. I hope it goes to show my commitment to Everton as well and that I really made the choice to be here.”

Meanwhile, Harrison described a similar conversation as he relayed his reasons for joining Everton to club media this week. He said: “It came down to a lot of people here at the club and the direction the club wants to go in. We came to the consensus this would be the best place for me to thrive. From the beginning, the manager expressed how much he wanted me. It was a difficult period last season but, after speaking with people, the club is in a really positive position and heading in the right direction.”

The positive interaction with Dyche is a consistent theme of those moves and so at Finch Farm on Friday, I asked him what he was pitching to transfer targets behind closed doors. His answer – the reward on offer should Everton get things right this season – is a compelling one.

He told me: “These players who are joining now will hopefully turn over the situation of the last two seasons and help push us forward. It is getting that right mix and balance to the squad. We have to win of course but it is also about getting the right age groups, the right balance, the right people we think can make the team improve, and them playing their part in a new-look to it all.

“We are coming out – that is the plan – of a couple of very, very tough seasons and trying to put the building blocks in place. Come and be a part of that. Come and explore that with us because it is a big club.

“People know that, you do not need to sell that to them, and being part of it getting back on track somewhat, that is a good thing I think for players, and an exciting thing. It is certainly not just down to me, the whole club speaks for itself. I am just the guy who has to work with them daily and try to mould them into what we want to achieve as a group.”

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