MX23RW : Tuesday, April 16 11:02:26| >> :60:2212:2212:

Sean Dyche insists FA Cup run "means nothing" unless it is won

The Clarets last reached the quarter-finals in 2003.

Sean Dyche insisted he would take no satisfaction from Burnley reaching the latter stages of the FA Cup unless they went all the way, as he said: "If you get knocked out, it means nothing."

It has been 18 years since the Clarets reached the quarter-finals of the competition, their hopes on that occasion ended by Watford, who claimed a 2-0 win at Vicarage Road with Dyche an unused substitute for the Hornets.

Dyche went close to a Wembley appearance in 1997 as his penalty put Chesterfield 2-0 up against Middlesbrough, who battled back to secure a 3-3 draw after extra time before the Teessiders prevailed 3-0 in the semi-final replay.

Those memories, as well as a conversation he once had with Gary Lineker, an FA Cup winner with Tottenham in 1991, have convinced Dyche not to place too much emphasis on a deep run in the competition.

"No-one really bothers with FA Cup quarter-finals, not even semi-finals," Dyche said ahead of Burnley's fifth-round fixture against Bournemouth on Tuesday evening.

"Gary Lineker once said to me, 'Sean, no-one remembers beaten semi-finalists'. But then we had our semi-final with Chesterfield and it went to extra time and he said, 'Actually, they will remember that one!'

"But his point is right. You want to win it. It's irrelevant going near. That's just my mindset. If you're on a journey to try and win the FA Cup, then you've got to win it.

"If you get knocked out, it means nothing. You can argue a semi-final means something, but you are not remembered for getting to a quarter-final."

Dyche has unashamedly prioritised retaining Burnley's place in the Premier League ahead of anything else and the club are yet to reach the last eight in either of the domestic cups since he took the reins in October 2012.

An opportunity to do so passed them by four years ago when Lincoln became the first non-league team to reach the FA Cup quarter-finals with a famous 1-0 win at Turf Moor.

However, Dyche is adamant there are no scars from that day.

"Lincoln on the day did everything you would want to try and do, they had one shot on target, scored a goal," Dyche added.

"I know it makes a story and people used words like 'embarrassment' and I said absolutely not. That belittles the opposition when your start talking about embarrassment, so no embarrassment at all.

"They deserved to win on the day, end of story.

"I have no baggage from that, none at all. That's football and I have been on the other side of that with small clubs who have beaten big clubs. So there is no ill-feeling over that one."

ID:434403: cacheID:434403:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:4028:
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Burnley manager Sean Dyche pictured on January 24, 2021
Read Next:
Burnley boss Sean Dyche insists "real goal" is Premier League survival
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Manchester CityMan City32227376324473
2Arsenal32225575264971
3Liverpool32218372314171
4Aston Villa33196868491963
5Tottenham HotspurSpurs32186865491660
6Newcastle UnitedNewcastle321551269521750
7Manchester UnitedMan Utd32155124748-150
8West Ham UnitedWest Ham33139115258-648
9Chelsea31138106152947
10Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton321111105250244
11Wolverhampton WanderersWolves32127134651-543
12Fulham33126154951-242
13Bournemouth32119124757-1042
14Crystal Palace3289153754-1733
15Brentford3388174758-1132
16Everton3298153248-1627
17Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest3379174258-1626
18Luton TownLuton3367204670-2425
19Burnley3348213368-3520
20Sheffield UnitedSheff Utd3237223084-5416


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!