REACTION: Cup Exit Puts Focus On Bigger Picture

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Dyche rues injuries as Clarets lack quality moments to extend cup run

2021-02-09T20:52:06.921Z

REACTION: Cup Exit Puts Focus On Bigger Picture

Dyche rues injuries as Clarets lack quality moments to extend cup run

2021-02-09T20:52:06.921Z

Sean Dyche admitted protecting an injury-hit squad had to be uppermost in his thoughts as the Clarets saw their FA Cup run ended.

A 2-0 home defeat to Championship promotion chasers Bournemouth denied Burnley a place in the quarter-finals of the competition for the first time since 2003.

The Clarets made eight changes to the side that drew with Brighton last Saturday to remain eight points clear of the Premier League’s bottom three.

And with five senior players out injured ahead of a crucial run of games against Crystal Palace, Fulham and West Bromwich Albion, Dyche has been forced to look at the bigger picture.

“It’s not an excuse or a complaint, it’s the reality of the Covid situation,” said the Burnley boss, whose side is in the middle of a run of 10 games inside a month.

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“We’ve had loads of games, odds times and all over the place.

“We can only align that with the injury list we’ve had. It must have had an effect of some kind because in my eight or so years here we’ve never had this many injuries and had so many people get fit and go down injured again.

“We have had to monitor that and we’ve still had to make changes tonight to try and give them as much rest as possible to make sure we can commit to the Premier League, while trying to win an FA Cup game.

“It’s difficult to compute all that and get the right outcomes.”

Dyche rested central defenders Ben Mee and James Tarkowski, as well as starting with Ashley Westwood, Ashley Barnes and Matt Lowton on the bench.

And with Erik Pieters unavailable due to suspension, Bournemouth took advantage to secure their place in the last eight for the first time since 1957 thanks to a first-half goal from Sam Surridge and a late penalty from former Bournemouth winger Junior Stanislas.

“People know I tend to play a (regular) team and expect a lot from them but even I’ve had to look at it and find some way of breaking the injuries we’ve had,” added Dyche, who gave a full senior debut to left-back Anthony Glennon.

“The Premier League is always the most important thing. It doesn’t devalue my thoughts on the FA Cup or mean we didn’t want to win the game tonight.

“But at the end of the season, everyone will only look at whether we’re in the Premier League or not.

“That’s just the harsh reality. The Premier League is a very, very important vehicle for this club to be in.”

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Despite the changes and a poor first-half performance, the Clarets had opportunities to level after the break – particularly for cup specialist Jay Rodriguez who missed Burnley’s best chance with an hour gone.

And Dyche had no complaints as his side extended their wait to get beyond round five.

He said: “It was a team that tried to win the game with the underbelly of a performance level we expect in the sense of the effort and commitment to the cause.

“We were lacking the real key moments, to be fair, apart from a great chance in the second half that could well have changed the game and the feel of the game.

“There was no lack of energy towards it, but some moments of quality were lacking and we conceded two soft goals, and you can’t do that.

“We kept knocking on the door and forcing to try and affect the game. I’m not disappointed in that but we didn’t find the quality moments you need.”