Dyche - no excuses after Swansea setback

Ki Sung-Yueng struck a late winner for the hosts at the Liberty Stadium, to snatch the points from a tight game, where the Clarets had had the better share of opportunities, without crafting anything cast-iron.

Burnley are eighth in the table, despite going without a win since the middle of December, and Dyche said after the game: “There’s no other thing to say other than we’ve got to stick at it, it’s our job to correct the run, mine as manager and the players, but within that, the margins are so fine.

“Today there’s nothing in the game and we arguably had the better chances, without being great. A bit huff and puff, energy, forcing chances at times.

“And they’ve nicked one from a poor clearance from us and drive across the box and it hits two people on the way in. And you think, ‘how can we find one of them?’

“Sometimes it’s as simple as that.

“But you’re playing a team who nine games ago were lacklustre, no energy, no performance level. Nine games later, here they are, the madness of modern football.

“A new manager comes in and all of a sudden they’re running harder, playing harder.

“That still makes it a different challenge.”

Burnley were winning games like this earlier in the season, when they climbed as high as fourth, albeit for 24 hours, after their last win against Stoke City, and Dyche added: “There wasn’t a lot in the game, arguably we had the better chances, although not golden chances, but the better share of the chances.

“The margins are so tight, even early season, I try and call it on a balanced view, and when we were winning, I did say they were tight games, but I think the performances were stronger in general.

“But we had a stronger squad, fully fit.

“There are no excuses though.

“I think the players are learning, some are maturing into what the Premier League is all about, because some haven’t played that much, but the margins are tight and you have to find a way of getting on the right side of them.”

Swansea were able to introduce £18m deadline day signing Andre Ayew from the bench, alongside England striker Tammy Abraham, with Burnley’s options limited through injury, as the hosts came on strong in the last quarter of the game: “It’s got a chance of having an impact (Swansea options on the bench) because they’ve bought in players and have some decent players.

“But I didn’t think it was a radical impact. Sometimes psychologically it has an impact, you get a crowd getting behind players, but it’s hard because we’re not far away as I said to the players.

“The margins are really fine.

“We have to get players back fit, because I think this squad has worked so hard, it needs that depth to come back fit to allow it to breathe again, and let us take stock with a group to work as a unit again.

“That’s important.

“Plus my record down here is rubbish, so that doesn’t help. I knew it before the game, you know when you get that thing you can’t shake, and you go ‘forget that’. Every time I’ve ever been to Swansea, as a player, a coach, manager.

“It’s rare for me, I’ve got rid of a load of those, Ipswich, Bolton, Blackburn, really powerful ones, but I’m still waiting to shake this one off