Football
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Burnley's quest to stay up not an 'impossible challenge' - Sean Dyche

Sean Dyche believes Burnley's players have already shown their appetite to pull off the perceived "impossible challenge" of preserving their Premier League status beyond this season.

Having taken 11 games to record a league victory two seasons ago, the Clarets got a win under their belts at only the second time of asking with Saturday's 2-0 victory over Liverpool at Turf Moor.

The odds are still stacked against Dyche's men when it comes to survival and their previous two top-flight experiences have ended after just one term.

While aware of their status as relegation candidates, Dyche insists his team have displayed a hunger to defy the bookmakers early on.

"We're differently equipped and we still need players, we're working hard on that, but it's a different group," he said of the 2014-15 team that last played in the top flight.

"We had to change the group from losing players at the beginning of last season and the team's morphed slightly differently.

"We keep doing that and trying to get a team. What everyone would deem the impossible challenge for a club like us, we want to make it possible. We said that two years ago and didn't quite get there. We want to do that again this year.

"It's obvious we're not leading the market with finance, depth of squad, but what will become apparent, and it already has, is we are willing for the challenge and we'll give every inch of ourselves to achieve what we want."

The win over Jurgen Klopp's Reds was immediately followed by a midweek EFL Cup loss to neighbours Accrington, who play three levels below them in the Football League.

Dyche made 10 changes to his starting line-up in the contest but still brought on Andre Gray, Scott Arfield and George Boyd to no avail as Stanley produced the biggest shock of the first round.

However, the Burnley boss is confident there will be no lasting effect on his team when they go from Accrington to Chelsea at the weekend.

"It doesn't change the mood, we know the main target this year," Dyche added. "It doesn't mean we're diminishing the thought of a cup but the main goal is what we're trying to achieve in the Premier League, we know that.

"It's a completely different challenge, a radically different challenge. Chelsea are one of the bigger clubs in the Premier League historically.

"It was a quiet year for them last year, but they've started well this year. There's a new manager, big signings, big players in general. It's a completely different situation."

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