Burnley boss Sean Dyche disappointed Steve Stone situation was made public

Sean Dyche is disappointed that Steve Stone’s situation at Burnley has been made public.

The Clarets’ Under-23 head coach has missed his team’s last three matches and is not attending training while an internal investigation is carried out.

Burnley have not made public the reason for Stone’s absence following reports of an allegation of bullying, but said it was being handled independently.

And manager Dyche said: “It is slightly misrepresented because it is an agreed break with the club whilst things are being checked over.

“We try and keep things private for the right reasons. Anything that is ever asked of us we will look into, which we are doing now.

“It is just a shame in the modern world that not many things remain private and I think that is a bit unfair in this case because nothing has been agreed, nothing is decided, it is just an ongoing view of a moment in time and the club will take care of that privately and appropriately.”

Dyche made headlines last weekend when he again spoke out against diving after Chelsea’s Callum Hudson-Odoi was booked for simulation in the box during the Blues’ 4-2 victory at Turf Moor.

Chelsea boss Frank Lampard and a number of TV pundits stuck up for the teenager, citing a touch in his back from Matt Lowton.

Dyche said: “What often gets misrepresented is I’m attacking a single player, which I wasn’t, I was trying to look at the greater good of the game.

“And equally nothing about results. They’re the two things that usually if I bring it up, it’s ‘oh, because they lost’. It’s not relevant because I made it clear that Chelsea were the stronger side on the day and very clinical and deserved their win.

“I hope Hudson-Odoi has a fantastic career. There’s individual moments that happen and then that word cheating is different to a cheat. I wouldn’t call any player an individual cheat because usually I don’t know them.

“The point is the greater good of the game. There are a lot of things I think are out of kilter with what the game should stand for and that is definitely one of them.

“The main thing for me is it seems (I am) a lone voice. I’m not attacking anyone either with that, it just seems that no one’s that worried.”

Dyche celebrated seven years in charge at Turf Moor on Wednesday, making him the third-longest-serving manager in the top four divisions just behind Wycombe’s Gareth Ainsworth and Eddie Howe of Bournemouth following Jim Bentley’s departure from Morecambe.

“It only makes a story now because it’s that difficult to stay in a job that long,” said Dyche.

“I think everyone agreed when Arsene (Wenger) finally left Arsenal that it was unlikely that’s going to happen again. I still think that is unlikely but it’s interesting now that it’s jumped to Eddie, myself and Gareth, who are deemed long in a game that is rapid fire.”

FourFourTwo Staff

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