IN the space of just five minutes, West Ham showed what separates them from Burnley.

A club who spent their way out of problems in front of goal, versus a club who simply cannot.

The story has been a familiar one for the Clarets for much of this season. No shortage of encouraging play, but not enough goals to show for it.

It is less than a year since West Ham fans were fretting about a lack of goals too.

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Some called for Sam Allardyce's head. Without the injured Andy Carroll, the Hammers simply didn’t have strikers capable of scoring regularly in the Premier League.

So backed by the finances of David Sullivan and David Gold, they spent £16.5m in the summer on two strikers.

First they splashed out £12m on Ecuadorian Enner Valencia, who had gained admiration from many around the world with three goals in three games at the World Cup.

Then they paid £4.5m for Senegal's Diafra Sakho, who had spearheaded Metz’s charge from the third tier of French football into the top flight.

They are figures that Burnley simply cannot afford to pay, but their worth was there for all to see at Turf Moor on Saturday.

On 49 minutes, full back Aaron Cresswell advanced down the left and swung in a cross. Sakho header, 1-0.

Five minutes later, opposite full back Carl Jenkinson advanced down the right and swung in a cross. Valencia header, 2-0.

Burnley did not deserve the scoreline, but they had come up against opponents ruthless enough to take their opportunities..

Sakho and Valencia had not had the biggest impact on the game before that, but given a chance in front of goal they needed no second invitation.

Valencia's header in particular, beyond Tom Heaton into the top corner, was stunning.

His strike partner Sakho has now scored for six games in succession.

At the other end, for all their bright play and close shaves, Lukas Jutkiewicz and the returning Danny Ings were still left waiting to break their Premier League ducks.

Jutkiewicz saw a goal ruled out for offside, while Ings was inches away from finding the net with a header in the second period.

But as things stand, they and Burnley’s other three strikers – Ashley Barnes, Marvin Sordell and the injured Sam Vokes – still do not have a Premier League goal to their name during their respective careers.

It is mainly down to a lack of Premier League action – the quintet have a combined total of only 15 top flight starts – but it is becoming a concern.

As is the league table.

Every Burnley fan understood that their team were up against it this season, given their obvious financial disadvantages.

So far, despite giving a creditable account of themselves in virtually every game, results are making Premier League survival look just as hard as everyone always expected.

Four points from eight games leaves them four points adrift of safety already.

Home games against West Ham – even considering the Hammers' recent form – and a Sunderland side who lost 8-0 at Southampton on Saturday were opportunities for victories.

If they are to stay in touch with the sides above them, they cannot afford to let too many more opportunities pass by.

They had much the better of the first half. The return of Ings and David Jones – the latter in place of Stephen Ward, a hero with the Republic of Ireland in Germany in midweek – was clearly making an impact.

Burnley’s passing was crisp and West Ham had a lucky escape when George Boyd’s half-volley came back off the underside of the crossbar in the fifth minute. Ings was being watched by Gareth Southgate – with the England under 21 boss in the stands alongside former Manchester United manager David Moyes – and he darted past Alex Song and James Collins before his shot was parried into the path of Jutkiewicz. The striker tapped in, but crucially he had strayed half a yard offside.

Jutkiewicz came close twice more, heading off target as he stretched to get on the end of crosses, before Stewart Downing was denied by the woodwork at the other end as he cut back on to his left foot and curled the ball on to the outside of the far post.

The second half begun with the concerning sight of Scott Arfield being sick on the pitch as play continued elsewhere on the field.

That he carried on playing said much about his determination, but within a few minutes Burnley were 2-0 down.

Sakho rose above Jason Shackell to head home the first goal from six yards, before Valencia pulled between Michael Duff and Kieran Trippier to direct a bullet header into the corner for the second. West Ham had the luxury of immediately bringing off Valencia for another striker Carlton Cole, who almost made it 3-0 when Trippier cleared his header off the line from a corner.

Goal-line technology replays – used for the first time at Turf Moor – showed Trippier had clearly prevented the ball from going in.

Within seconds Ings had charged down the other end and won a corner, which Michael Kightly swung in from the left.

Adrian dropped the ball – claiming a foul by Ings, who went down himself before the ball broke for Boyd to lash in from six yards.

The Clarets had a lifeline and almost had an equaliser as Trippier whipped in a trademark cross and Ings headed agonisingly wide.

West Ham soon made it 3-1, though, as Sakho headed Morgan Amalfitano’s corner back into the six-yard box and Cole nodded in from close range.

Substitute Ashley Barnes hit the bar for Burnley from a Trippier cross late on, but in truth the game was already gone.