'Strength comes from within' - Burnley's inspiration for their Great Escape

Burnley go into Wednesday night’s game with Everton at Turf Moor – the first of the final 10 fixtures – four points behind the Toffees.

While the Clarets have been in some scrapes at the wrong end of the table since promotion in 2016, they have staved off the drop with something to spare.

In 2016/17, they retained Premier League status for the first time by earning their only away win of the season at Crystal Palace, as they finished 16th, six points clear of the drop zone.

After finishing seventh and qualifying for the Europe League the following season, in 2018/19, despite only having 12 points at the halfway stage, the Clarets drew 2-2 at Stamford Bridge on Easter Monday to rubberstamp their place in the top flight, as they finished 15th with 40 points, again six points above 18th.

And after a 10th-place finish in 2019/20, last term they won at Fulham to secure survival with three games to spare, finishing 11 clear of relegation in 17th.

This campaign is as sticky a situation as they have found themselves in since being relegated in 2015.

But, again, it is not as bad as the holes West Brom (2004/05, bottom at Christmas, five points adrift with 10 games to play), Portsmouth (2005/06, four wins in 28 games, eight points adrift), West Ham (2006/07, 10 points adrift with nine to play), Fulham (2007/08, four wins from the first 33 games, then four from their last five), Wigan (2011/12, bottom of the league, with five of the top seven still to play), Sunderland (2013/14, seven points adrift with six games to play, including Manchester City, Chelsea and Manchester United away) and Leicester (2014/15, seven points adrift with nine games to play) dug themselves out of.

While Dyche is encouraged that it has been done before, he feels it is more powerful to look at what the club has achieved over almost a decade under his leadership – going from mid-table in the Championship, to promotion as runners-up in his first full season, bouncing back as Championship winners – 23 games undefeated – after relegation, returning to European football after over half a century, a new state of the art training ground, six-successive seasons in the top flight, twice finishing in the top 10, and a raft of international footballers – including the first to pull on England’s Three Lions since the 1970s.

Asked about teams having been in worse positions, he said: "Absolutely, but I'm not really bothered about other clubs.

"You can look at the history of the Premier League, but I look at what we're doing.

"We shouldn't need inspiration - we have our own from what we've done.

"Never forget, this town, this club, where it is now from where it was...massive inspiration to each other.

"We don't have to look far, across the room. If I was a player, I'd be looking across the room going, 'by the way, they've played some football, they've done some business here.

"Strength comes from within.”

And for Dyche, this situation is no different to the other challenges he has met head on in his time at the club: "It's doesn't feel any different, it feels like another challenging season, like we've had before.

"We've been in similar positions, slightly tougher this time, but we've been in similar positions at different stages of seasons, it's just as it gets towards the end of the season, it adds more weight.

"When you have 12 points after 19 games in the Europa season, trust me, that's not a healthy position.

"Had that been towards the end of that season, it makes more of a story, but the story is from us internally, us correcting things, taking it on and winning games.”

Dyche and Burnley have tasted the pain of relegation before, so what did he learn?: "Where you you start?

"There were so many things – a football manager's role is a constant learning curve, constantly redifining a group, reenergising a group, looking at the details, trying to analyse the bits that are and aren't going well.

"The hardest thing this season is analytically a lot of the performances are where they should be, but we haven't come out winning games.

"Then you have to start thinking 'what am I going to change?' And then it's 'hang on, what am I changing for?'

"Stats and facts are there for a reason. I don't go purely off stats, as you know, but it blends into your eyes and your feel, your staff, people I invite to games to look at us.

"Most have said 'you're not far away'. But being not far away and getting the job done can be two different things.

"So it's that balance. You can't be naive enough to think it will sort itself out, but equally, not always changing loads, because you're not far away.”

And while many fans will be nervous wrecks on Wednesday night, Dyche and his players hope to retain their focus, on performing and producing: "That's a human thing, feeling pressure, that shows you care, everyone feels that, fans, staff, players - it's managing that, taking on a performance and going and winning games.

"It's getting that feel, and that's my focus, it's not throwing around words like six-pointers - that's for other people.

"My job is to stay focused and keep the players focused.”