This is how Burnley manager Sean Dyche helped make Football Manager 2021

The latest edition of the smash-hit game was released to the public this week and aims to create an immersive and true-to-real-life experience for its army of loyal fans.

Sports Interactive – the engine’s creator – claims Football Manager ‘empowers’ the player and provides ‘management experiences that deliver football authenticity like no other game can.’

Indeed, Sports Interactive boss Jacobson detailed just how influential Clarets manager Dyche has been at providing accurate insight for fresh in-game features.

"We’ve had access to chairmen, chief executives, being able to ask them about how the game plays and how real football works, Jacobson said to The Athletic’s Football Manager podcast. “Basically what we are getting right and what we are getting wrong.

"We then started seeing more and more footballers playing the game, so we then set up a group of ballers who help us test the game, which started off with about six people and is now at about 2000 footballers from non-league to Ballon D’or nominees.

“So we started bringing a lot of those people into the studio for talks every six weeks, asking them questions which are related directly to features in the game.

"We had one with Sean Dyche earlier in the year and I’ve known Sean for a long time and he was completely open with us and was really really helpful in both helping steer features for this game and future games.

“So they’re all involved in the process and it helps that we’ve got a partnership with the League Managers’ Association, who have been great bringing people in.

“But it’s not just managers, it’s assistant managers, it’s loan managers, it’s directors of football who will come in and talk to us and happily answer any questions that help steer the game and make it better.”

When asked whether Dyche himself enjoys a game or two on Football Manager, Jacobson said: “I don’t believe that Sean plays the game but I think some of his family members do.”