Dyche has said that the former England international “still has a long way to go” before returning to first-team duties with Everton, following a further injury setback on his return to playing in the English Premier League.
“We’ll see,” Dyche informed Sky Sports. “He’s got a long way to go. We purposefully kept him away from that, and we agreed on it with him – just to give him time, distance. We hope he returns, but we don’t know. We’ve given him the privacy he needs at this time. He’s in terrific health; I chatted with him recently. Making sense of another injury is challenging, but he’ll get through it.
Dele, 27, had surgery in January to treat a chronic groin injury. The former Tottenham Hotspur star hasn’t played a competitive game since the beginning of last year with Turkish club Besiktas, where he sustained a hip injury that contributed to his current setback during his first rehabilitation phase.
Dele will continue to watch from the sidelines, hoping to cheer on his Everton teammates as they fight for Premier League survival. The Toffees are presently 18th in the table and will face Crystal Palace at Goodison Park on Monday.
