Burnley boss Sean Dyche on players' contracts and transfer planning during the Premier League shutdown

Clarets boss Sean Dyche wonders whether the game’s governing bodies will just extend contracts to the end of the delayed campaign, to enable them to fulfil the remaining league fixtures.

Dyche accepts there are more pressing matters right now, than whether football will resume in the near future.

But clubs are looking for clarity amid the confusion.

Burnley themselves have midfielder Jeff Hendrick, Aaron Lennon, Phil Bardsley and Adam Legzdins out of contract in the summer.

Joe Hart, Robbie Brady, Jimmy Dunne and Aiden O’Neill (currently on loan at Brisbane Roar) are also coming to the end of their deals, although the club have an option for an extra year in their favour.

Dyche looked at the situation, and said: “I can only surmise there’ll be a common sense view where contracts, if they are running down, will be extended for a period.

“But that’s the thing, the story behind the story.

“Forgetting coronavirus, what football is, fans see at the stadium or through TV, they don’t necessarily understand the backlog of all the details and the minutae that goes right through the club.

“For example, the club have announced they will keep paying casual staff, and I think that would never even cross some supporters’ minds, nor should it, they’re not there to worry about all the small stuff in football.

“But it’s important small stuff.

“Going all the way through to players’ contracts, finances, TV rights and things like that, there’s a lot going on behind the scenes that has to be factored in, not just the idea of getting out there and gettiing it on screen or in a stadium or whatever.”

The transfer window will also need to be changed to fit the dates for the current season to end, and forthcoming season to begin, with a maximum 16-week period allowed.

Dyche has been in contact with the club’s recruitment department as regards transfer planning, but that is also up in the air in the current crisis: “We’ve had a few conference calls about the concept of it all, but everyone is still in the same boat - are they going to extend the window and all that?

“The thing is, the dates - if there’s going to be a date (to restart the league), and hopefully there will, that will give us the focus.

“Once you get a date in principle, that you can work towards...

“We’ve had the first date, but you don’t know when that gets stronger, when THE date will be announced.

“We’re kind of working towards a ‘go back to training’ schedule, but at the minute it’s flexible because we’re waiting on news every day.”

Burnley had pencilled in a date of Monday, April 6th, to potentially return to training, but that will have to be pushed back, as Dyche added: “We won’t be in on the 6th, no, people sometimes are not aware, but we are with the government guidelines as well, we are watching what we do, staying at home with our families, and we are part of that.

“That is bigger than a decision by the club or Premier League, the start point is to make sure we’re all playing our part at home with our families, and hopefully well.

“Then we’ll work beyond that when we get more news.”

Has the manager taken the opportunity to run through videos of potential targets?: The staff have been watching through screens, but it’s not the same for a manager.

“In the ideal world, you watch players as many times as possible, but ideally you watch them a couple of times with your own eyes rather than through a screen.

“I think the analytical side is done by our team, and they crunch down on players they think would be appropriate for us, and then we get ourselves or key staff members to go and watch, which isn’t possible at the moment, of course.

“I don’t think we’re at the point where we’re going to sign five players through a screen!

“But, again, how is this going to affect the financial planning, the league, how will it affect clubs’ finances?

“All of that, there’s that many things going on.

“What we are doing is Riggy (Mike Rigg, technical director) is making sure our scouts are still active, working on players we’ve heard about and can access through a laptop, and watch on the screen.

“So all that is still going on, for sure.”