Burnley boss Sean Dyche - lowering average age of the side would “cost a lot of money”

But while that is fantastic news for the club, the hard work continues to improve the flow of young talent to the first team picture.

Dwight McNeil is the first player to come through the system and establish himself in the first team since Jay Rodriguez over a decade earlier.

And while the club look to bridge that gap, Sean Dyche’s side are not getting any younger.

The average age of the side which took the field against Sheffield United on Sunday was 28, with four players 30 or over.

McNeil, at 20, was the only under 21.

Dyche is well aware that promising youngsters from outside the club cost big fees.

He has invested well in that area - bringing in Charlie Taylor and James Tarkowski at 23, Nick Pope at 24, Johann Berg Gudmundsson and Chris Wood at 25 - and Bailey Peacock-Farrell arrived aged 22 last summer.

But is he concerned about the age of his squad, bearing in mind he has lost Jeff Hendrick, Aaron Lennon and Joe Hart?

Dyche said: “It’s a really simple situation - very good players who are young cost a lot of money.

“It’s really simple. Unless you can bring them through your system, people like Dwight McNeil and Jay Rodriguez, back in the day, then it costs a of money. So it’s a really simple equation.

“At the end of the day, older players tend to be cheaper. It’s as simple as that and younger players tend to be more expensive.

“That’s what I consistently speak to the chairman and the board about, that’s the balance.

“If you want a more recognised player, older, but more experienced, usually they are cheaper.

“If you want the same quality of player younger, they are more expensive. It’s not rocket science.”

Dyche landed midfielder Josh Brownhill in January, aged 24 - captain of a Championship club in Bristol City, with over 250 games under his belt.

Burnley were almost gazumped by a Premier League rival, believed to be tomorrow night’s opponents West Ham, but he bought into Dyche and the club, and has looked the part since the restart.

Dyche said: “Josh is learning about the Premier League. He’s made a good start and we like what he’s about as a lad as we all as a player.

“I don’t think anything is impossible in football, but the possibilities get tougher when you’re thinking Josh, don’t forget, was in a swap deal with Nakhi Wells, so the actual fee was £4million.

“You won’t get much for £4million these days, trust me.

“The ability to get the right players, get them in the building, get them working, get them adjusted to the Premier League and then to do it five at a time, is really difficult. Trust me.

“We work as diligently and as hard as we can and you still need the experienced lads as well to allow them to grow into the Premier League.

“They still need good players around them and I think we have very good players here, regardless of age profiles.”

Dyche might have a shorter window to try and bolster his squad, and he admitted: "It's improbable we bring in four or five, in my experience, we have done once I think, the year Corky came in, Jon Walters, Bardo...

"I don't think historically we've done big numbers.

"It might be a case of you get what you can.

"I don't know budgets, I've never had one since I've been here, funnily enough, we just sort of find a way, and we've done that well.

"We'll probably have to do that again.

“It's a constant thing, we have to often get players that have gone between the cracks, we know situations at clubs where you keep your ear to the ground - like Corky, we'd heard Swansea were trying to bring in a central midfield player, and the timing was perfect.

"We were straight into Swansea, and say, 'we'd love to take him', and that deal happened.

"Sometimes we've got to monitor things and try and act as quickly as possible.”