Burnley boss Sean Dyche shrugs off Sam Allardyce Europa League comments

Sean Dyche has shrugged off comments made by Sam Allardyce which claimed that Burnley "haven't got the squad to cope" with both the Premier League and the Europa League.

The Clarets qualified for Europe by virtue of their seventh-place finish in the league last term, and they are just one tie away from the 2018-19 Europa League group stages.

However, Burnley have only picked up one point from their opening two top-flight games this season, prompting Allardyce to warn Dyche of the dangers of overexertion with a small squad.

When asked by reporters to comment on the former Everton manager's comments, Dyche replied: "I've got great respect for people like Sam Allardyce and what he has done in the game and his years of service. I understand his train of thought, of course. I don't think it's anything negative about ourselves, I think it's just looking at the bigger picture.

"But we want to take on the challenge. We've made that clear. It's good for me as a manager who continues to learn, it's good for the group. The Premier League is an unforgiving one, we know that. There is a demand with this, more from the travelling and the slight time change.

"Squad depth - it's well documented we have some injuries and we were looking for more bodies in the market and that didn't happen. That's the way it goes. We believe in the group we've got and we take on the next challenge, which is tomorrow night."

Burnley face Olympiacos in their Europa League playoff tie, with the first leg taking place in Greece on Thursday night.