Nicky Hayen opens up on Alan Pace talks and Burnley fan frustration
Nicky Hayen opens up on Alan Pace talks and Burnley fan frustration
Nicky Hayen has no interest in getting dragged into an off-the-field debate about fan frustrations with Burnley chairman Alan Pace.
Angry Clarets fans let their voices be heard on Friday night in front of the Sky Sports cameras during the 2-1 defeat to Wolves.
A supporter unfurled a “Pace Out” banner in the Cricket Field Stand while a chant of “Alan Pace, get out of our club” echoed around Turf Moor.
It came as the Clarets stretched their winless home league run to an entire calendar year.
But Hayen, speaking ahead of this weekend’s trip to Lincoln City, refused to get involved in the current rift between Pace, the board and the club’s fanbase.
“I think I just have to focus myself on the sport side,” he said.
“I know that Alan has a lot of good intentions and ideas with the club and that's the only thing I know.
“For the rest, I think my job is already hard enough on the sport side and this is where I put my energy in.”
Hayen is coming under increasing pressure himself after winning just one of his first 11 league games, leaving Burnley rooted inside the Championship’s bottom three.
Despite the disastrous start to the season, the Clarets boss insists Pace and the board are understanding of why it’s going so wrong on the pitch, citing Burnley’s injury problems as an example.
“We talk a lot and it's not always about if I'm in danger or not,” he added.
“We're just talking also about the daily situation and with the injuries. We suffered already a lot and how we can deal with it and also how can we beat Lincoln, because this is the most important for the weekend.
“The talks were just a reflection of the [Wolves] game and of course the unfortunate injuries of Jamie [Vardy] and Jacob [Bruun Larsen].
“But still, we feel the support of the players and the reaction they showed on the pitch. It's nice to see that they show a lot of intensity, but it's something we have to show on the pitch on Saturday because we can always say our training sessions went quite well, but we have to execute it in the game because this is the most important.
“But again, I'm sitting here with a positive energy and this is the thing we want to show on Saturday.”