Everton 1-0 Brentford: Idrissa Gueye goal seals Toffees’ Premier League safety as Sean Dyche makes it three wins in a week with victory over Bees

For the first time in what must seem like a lifetime for Everton fans, there will be no sleepless nights in the final month of the season.

The final few games can be enjoyed without the shadow of impending doom lingering menacingly over their shoulders. Nails are safe from being bitten, for another season at least.

It always seemed unlikely that we would be treated to a repeat of the blood and thunder football that saw them dispatch their bitter foes from the other side of Stanley Park, Liverpool, in style during a memorable mid-week Merseyside derby win.

They were still singing yesterday about how their neighbours had surrendered what grip they had on the title that night here. But after the physical, mental and emotional exertion of that win, voices seemed a little hoarser and wearier.

Still, there were some home fans dancing in the stands ahead of kick-off. With good reason too, given that Luton’s defeat at Wolves earlier in the day left Dyche’s men with their fate in their own hands.

Jordan Pickford once again played a key role in the win, making some impressive stops 

Sean Dyche’s men have now won three games in a week and are now mathematically safe 

A point would always certainly be enough with Everton’s vastly superior goal difference over the Hatters. But the three points they picked up after Idrissa Gana Gueye’s second-half strike means the mathematicians can put away their calculators for another season.

And so a season like no other, one that seemed, at times, to plunge to a new low with every week that passed, does have a positive ending after all.

That seemed in doubt following a record-breaking club run of 13 games without a win. Worse still were two points deduction, one of unprecedented proportions.

You can see why the trials and tribulations led Sean Dyche to liken his job to juggling with sand. 

There have been several highs in his managerial career, not least the remarkable job he did at Burnley that few still seem to appreciate the significance of.

You could, though, argue he has saved perhaps his best trick of all for this season. 

One which has required him to galvanise his players time and again after being punished for factors outside of their control. They were setbacks that would have broken some teams.

It hasn’t always been pretty at times. Look no further than the first-half against Brentford, where neither side could muster an attempt on goal. 

Perhaps the best chance of all fell to Abdoulaye Doucoure, who sent his horribly volley after Youssef Chermiti’s dainty flick had created space for him in the box.

Dwight McNeil finally kicked the game into life in the second-half, rattling a shot from distance off the bar. 

That got bums off seats in the Gwladys Street Stand and those fans were soon bouncing again after Gueye ran onto a loose ball and smashed it past Brentford keeper Mark Flekken after the visitors failed to clear their lines.

A VAR check brought a temporary halt to that joy, but the jubilant scenes were resumed when referee Darren England confirmed the goal stood.

The players celebrate knowing how important Gueye’s goal is to guaranteeing safety 

Ivan Toney wasn’t able to make an impact for Brentford on his return to the starting line-up 

Chermiti, making his first league start in place of the ill Dominic Calvert-Lewin, should have put the game out of sight but could only scoop the ball wide of Flekken’s goal.

Brentford pushed but lacked their usual sting in attack. Jarrad Branthwaite hardly gave the returning Ivan Toney a sniff, only enhancing his claim for a spot in Gareth Southgate’s squad for this summer’s Euros. James Garner almost sealed the win in style with a spectacular free-kick that thundered off the bar.

But the score did not matter this afternoon. It was all about clearing that final fence on the run for home.

There will be plenty more hurdles for Dyche’s side in the near and distant future given the club’s protracted takeover saga and perilous financial position.

But Everton will play top-flight football in their final season at Goodison Park before moving to their new swanky home on Bramley Moore Docks in 2025.

Who knows what the future will hold, but that is at least the start of a befitting swansong for this historic old stadium.