Dyche delighted with key duo Barton and Gray

Clarets boss Sean Dyche is delighted how quickly Andre Gray and Joey Barton have assimilated into life at Turf Moor.
Joey Barton and Andre Gray celebrate the opening goal at Rotherham in October.Joey Barton and Andre Gray celebrate the opening goal at Rotherham in October.
Joey Barton and Andre Gray celebrate the opening goal at Rotherham in October.

Record signing Gray has eight goals in 11 appearances, climbing to the top of the Championship goal charts, while Barton has also impressed after starting the last seven games.

Neither have experienced defeat when starting for the Clarets, with Barton’s debut, coming on at 2-0 down in a 2-1 loss at home to Reading, the only time either have lost in a Burnley shirt.

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Dyche was always convinced of the pair’s quality, but as he explained: "It’s not an exact science.

“We all know the stories from down the years, before I was involved in management. You all see players who you would put your life on going to a club and doing great, and they didn’t.

“Some move for millions and millions of pounds, didn’t happen.

“Equally, you’ve seen under-the-radar players who you were not sure of, that did great.

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“You’re in an industry where your staff are important, your recruitment staff are absolutely important then your own opinion and moulding that into what you need.

“The players that come in are still human, they don’t know everything about what you want to do.

“You’ve still got to educate them in how you want the team to work and their role within it and get used to the cultural changes, different voices, different ways of working, different protocols, rules,

“It all takes time but I’m very pleased the players that we’ve brought in have adapted very quickly and moulded into the group very quickly.”

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Gray came at a price, doubling Burnley’s previous record outlay at £6m, and Dyche believes there is far more to come from the 24-year-old: “I don’t think he’s been overly surprising, that’s why we brought him – because we thought he was very good and we could get him better working how we did.

“He’s shown very good signs.

“He’s not a surprise that he’s a very good player, I think there’s still more to come – I spoke to him when he came in.

“If it’s Duffo, with his age and experience, we still work with him, as we would with a 17-year-old to try and continually get the best out of people.

“I wish I would have known more about it when I was younger.

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“The open-mindedness to keep developing is a big thing about what we work here and Andre is a big part of that, Joey as well.

“He’s been as good as anyone about accepting some of the changes and been very open-minded in terms of some of the ideas I’ve got in terms of him and his play.”

Dyche is a big advocate of an environment of respect, hard work, and training at game tempo.

And he feels that helps the players settle and continue to develop: “There’s an environment here that I think is really important, I genuinely value it.

“Not because I have to instil it, because it’s appropriate.

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“If you want high-level performers, they’ve got to be in a high-level situation.

“The feel of the environment, the positivity – everything counts. We are very detailed on everything counts.

“That’s a good environment to be in anyway.

“And then if you add in people with very good attitudes, people who are willing to work at those details all the time – it doesn’t guarantee that they improve, but it’s got to give you a better chance in any walk of life.

“If you’re willing to deliver in an environment that is going to support you and offer you the chance to improve, then it’s got to give you a better chance to get better.”

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