‘I was very confident, it was weird. There was no shred of doubt I was going to smash it. ‘Hit it clean,’ was all I was thinking. That’s what I did’ Sean Dyche on viral ‘Brexit penalty’ for Chesterfield

Sean Dyche isn't an obvious candidate to emerge as a man of the internet but the current wave of podcasts was made for him.

The Nottingham Forest manager has become a familiar voice on the online airwaves and his burgeoning social media legend is bolstered by a meme-friendly demeanour.

Dyche, in caricature, is in a 'Brexit' box – proper football man, no-nonsense (total woke or otherwise), straightforward to an absurd degree. His penalty for Chesterfield against Middlesbrough in the FA Cup semi-final in 1997 gained a second life because, well, it fits.

Sean Dyche on his viral 'Brexit' penalty

"Putting the ball on the spot, you’re on a bit of a knife-edge between success and failure" Dyche tells FourFourTwo. "You don’t want to let people down – the fans, your team-mates and family.

"I carried that burden throughout my playing career. I now encourage my son – who’s playing at Northampton – to express himself and fully enjoy it all because, looking back, I did worry about things a lot, and of course I did as I got the ball at Old Trafford that day.

"Having said that, as I took a breath before running up to take it, I was very confident. Actually, it was weird. I’d always thought that day would come – that moment.

"I’d always thought I would take a vital penalty on a big stage and there I was. I was nervous, but knew what I was doing.

"There was no shred of doubt I was going to smash it. 'Hit it clean' was all I was thinking. That’s what I did.

"The result didn’t go our way, but I wasn’t left with heartbreak because it was such an incredible occasion that will go down in the club’s history.

"It would have been incredible to get to Wembley – if not for the ref we would have done. Overall it was an amazing occasion and it’s nice to be part of a club’s historic moment."

It was quite a penalty. Referee David Elleray awarded the spot kick with Chesterfield 1-0 up and pushing hard for an all-timer of an upset.

Dyche started his run-up on the edge of the 'D' and ran, hard, towards the ball on the spot. He blootered it, low and central, and it almost didn't seem to matter whether there was a goalkeeper in the way.

But this was Sean Dyche. The real Sean Dyche, not the cartoon. His so-called 'Brexit' penalty was all about Getting It Done but, in reality, it had a lovely continental curl on it too.

Chesterfield were pegged back to 2-2 and needed a late equaliser of their own at the end of extra time after Middlesbrough scored a third. The replay at Hillsborough was an unfussy 3-0 win for Boro.