BURNLEY boss Sean Dyche praised his side’s resolve after their fine come-from-behind win against Aston Villa.
The Clarets were 1-0 and 2-1 down at Turf Moor but rallied with Chris Wood sealing a memorable 3-2 victory 11 minutes from time.
Ollie Watkins’ 10th goal of the season put Villa ahead inside the first quarter of an hour as the visitors dominated the first period.
An unmarked Ben Mee levelled things up from a corner early in the second and although the excellent Jack Grealish restored Villa’s lead, they were left stunned as Dwight McNeil’s cross-cum-shot trickled into the net before Wood’s header gave Burnley victory.
It all meant the Clarets scored three goals for the second game in a row – they won 3-0 at Fulham in the FA Cup with a largely second string line-up – while they came into this fixture as the division’s joint lowest scorers this season.
Only five goals had come at home this term before Villa’s visit but despite Burnley being outclassed in the opening 45 minutes, Dyche insists there was no dramatic half-time team talk that swung the contest.
“Villa were excellent in the first half, by far the better team,” Dyche said. “They looked more confident with the ball, had a good shape without the ball, we didn’t really ask too many questions, they did.
“But our diligence saw us through that half well. It was a soft goal from our point of view, but then there were blocks by our centre-halves, Popey made a couple of big saves and we stayed in it.
“I said to the players at half-time, ‘I don’t think they can be as strong in the second half and we can do miles better’. There was no shouting or screaming, it was just pointing out what I felt was the obvious.
“The second half was a completely different feel. The mentality to see the game through and do what you need to do to win a game, we’ve never been short of that, I don’t feel.”
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel