BURNLEY boss Sean Dyche says Ashley Barnes will be out for “weeks rather than days” due to a thigh injury. The forward missed last weekend’s 3-3 draw with Crystal Palace at Turf Moor and is set for a spell on the sidelines. Dyche also revealed Matej Vydra and Jay Rodriguez have minor problems but says they should be available for Sunday’s clash with Tottenham.
Sean Dyche said: “We’ve got a few niggly ones which should calm down. Jay Rodriguez, just a bit of tightness. Matej Vydra, a bit of tightness. But they should be fine. Barnesy is the only one (who is ruled out for) a bit of time now because he’s got a pretty decent tear in his thigh, so that’s going to take a bit of time to calm down I think. There isn’t a time limit on it but it’s certainly not going to be days – it’s going to be weeks. He’s the only current one that is really out of action so to speak.”
Spurs enter the game on the back of a 2-1 defeat against Slovenian side NS Mura in the Europa Conference League. However, Dyche insists they have lots of quality and knows his side have to be prepared for a tough game.
Sean Dyche added: “They’ve had to change again – quick changes with managers. There are no two ways about the manager (Antonio Conte) knowing his stuff and the players know their stuff. It’s just sometimes you need a connection between what you’re trying to achieve tactically – a change of culture, a change of manager – and get the best out of the players. There’s no doubt in my mind that there are still some highly talented players there – that’s a given for Tottenham sides over the last few years. The manager getting the best out of them – that’s his job. His record suggests he will over time. They don’t lack talent, that’s for sure. We’re going to have to be well aware of the strengths they’ve got. But equally we’re on a nice little run of performances, we look a threat, we can score goals. So we still focus on ourselves.”
