Burnley's Dyche realistic after Anfield loss
Burnley boss Sean Dyche was realistic in his assessment of his side's 2-0 Premier League defeat at Liverpool on Wednesday.
Liverpool - now unbeaten in 12 Premier League matches - were simply too good for relegation-threatened Burnley, with goals from Jordan Henderson and Daniel Sturridge settling the clash at Anfield.
Burnley had goalkeeper Tom Heaton to thank for the fact that Liverpool only scored twice and the visitors rarely caused problems, but Dyche refused to criticise his players.
"They [Liverpool] were very good. They are a side expensively assembled with top-class players who have found that run of form and that belief in the way they are playing," he said.
"We knew it's a stern task to come here and get a win. There has to be a reality in the challenge.
"But they are a fine side, make no mistake. They can affect the game from the bench, they've got different ways of playing, different movement patterns.
"They are right in the zone, they are high on confidence and are a very good side.
"There's a lot of things to learn, particularly for our younger players.
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"I will also say they put it together with hard work. I thought they pressed ever so well and they [Liverpool] are developing into a fine side."
Dyche was disappointed in the second goal his side conceded, though, as Sturridge made the most of slack marking to nod in Henderson's cross.
"We gave them too many chances too easily early in the game, Tom was on terrific form," he added.
"Second half we gave away a really, really poor goal - that from our point of view and how we operate, was a poor goal [to concede].
"The first one can happen, a high-quality player, a good strike, but the second one was really poor I felt.
"At 1-0 you never know. We've shown that before. The players did keep going, but they [Liverpool] are on real good form."
Despite the defeat, which extends their winless run to eight matches in all competitions, Dyche is not worried about the pressure on Burnley.
And he thinks a relegation dogfight will bring out the best in his side, adding: "When we get further into this run, it starts getting more nitty gritty, where teams are fighting. And I think that bodes well for us, because we're good at it."
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