Sean Dyche has shed new light on a furious tunnel incident with Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp ahead of the Merseyside Derby.
Everton make the short trip to Anfield to take on fierce local rivals Liverpool at 8pm this evening. While Dyche’s side go into the game off the back of a 1-0 victory over league leaders Arsenal, Liverpool are in a woeful run of form.
Klopp’s side are yet to have picked up a Premier League win in 2023, while in their last four games they have claimed a solitary point.
The Reds, who were last season’s Champions League finalists, are currently languishing in tenth in the league. Meanwhile, Everton remain in the relegation zone after a dismal start to the season under previous manager Frank Lampard.
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Though Dyche will be taking charge of his first Merseyside Derby, he has faced Liverpool several times as Burnley manager.
Indeed, in 2021, after the Clarets produced a stunning 1-0 victory over the Reds, Dyche was involved in a heated exchange with Klopp.
Dyche opens up about Klopp exchange
In the opening period of Burnley’s 2021 victory over Liverpool, managers and players clashed after Fabinho and Ashley Barnes challenged for an aerial ball.
The Brazilian midfielder only received a yellow card despite VAR having checked for a potential red. As tensions rose over the challenge words and gestures were exchanged between the dugouts.
At the time, Klopp dismissed the spat as "nothing", while Dyche said: "You know when we come to these places, we are allowed to actually fight and are actually allowed to try and win. That's all it was.
"It was nothing out of the normal - just two managers fighting to win a game. There's nothing wrong with that."
However, in his press conference ahead of the Merseyside Derby, Dyche opened up about the incident.
He said: "There's no renewing it. It's just two managers playing against each other's teams. There was nothing in that [incident from 2021].
"He felt my coat wasn't good like John McGinn did, and he mentioned it. And I say 'Well, you weren't the first to get there. John's already referenced my coat'. That one cleared that up.
"Look, I think fans don't mind that. They want to see two managers fight for their teams, for their clubs, standing up.
"After the game, it's gone. For me, it's done. That's it. End of.
"That used to be a more regular occurrence in football. Maybe not so much now. It used to be nothing [but] it makes a story."
The reference to midfielder McGinn concerned a January 2021 game between Burnley and Aston Villa.
The midfielder is believed to have told Dyche to “shut up” after taking offence to touchline complaints from the manager.
This prompted the Dyche to reportedly respond: "So you've been in the Premier League for one season and you think you're proper big time, telling me to ''shut up''?"
McGinn is said to have hit back by saying: "You've been in the Premier League for six seasons and you're still wearing the same s*** coat."
Topics: Liverpool, Everton, Jurgen Klopp, Sean Dyche, Burnley, Premier League
Chris Byfield