NATHANIEL Chalobah wants to use his loan spell with Burnley as a real learning experience after making his Premier League debut on Sunday.

Chalobah was brought on as a half-time substitute at West Bromwich Albion after Sean Dyche opted to introduce the Chelsea midfielder gradually to the Burnley first team.

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The 19-year-old joined Burnley on loan until January at the start of September, but was not included in the 18-man squad for matches against Crystal Palace and Sunderland.

Chalobah has previously had loan spells in the Championship with Watford, Nottingham Forest and Middlesbrough, and received words of support from Chelsea’s assistant boss Steve Holland ahead of his first appearance in the top flight.

He earned praise from Dyche for his performance at the Hawthorns, too – despite the fact that his introduction came with Burnley already well on the way to a 4-0 defeat.

“For me it was about coming on and making an impact,” said Chalobah, who came on with the Clarets 2-0 down. “Coming on as a sub, you’ve got to get to grips with the pace of the game.

“It was very hard coming on and trying to do that. I tried to do my best by getting on the ball and trying to get to grips with it as much as I could.

“It was the best feeling ever stepping on the pitch. Just looking around the stadium, it was packed, I was lost for words a bit, but I tried to get my head right and settle into the game as quickly as I could.

“I had a phone call from Steve Holland before the game wishing me good luck and that’s always good.

“The club (Chelsea) are always keeping tabs and it’s always good for me to come out and get experience. I’m trying to learn as much as I can.

“I’m learning every day and I’m open to playing wherever, but central midfield is a position that I really enjoy. I just want to learn as much as I can from people – off the lads in training, off the manager – and just keep improving as a player.

“You never know where you might end up.”

Dyche opted to select the more experienced Steven Reid in midfield on Sunday rather than pitching in Chalobah from the start.

The teenager was booked little more than a minute after his half-time introduction but the boss was impressed with Chalobah’s display and believes he will continue to improve with game time.

“That’s the plan,” Dyche said.

“Nathaniel was definitely a positive. He’s a young man earning his spurs in football. We wanted him to go and get the ball and play, and I thought he did that.

“Nathaniel is a young man, and it was a big game for us. I was close to starting him, but we wanted to go with that bit of experience.”

Chalobah admitted it was not ideal to make his debut in a heavy defeat but said the focus was now on responding at Leicester City on Saturday.

The England under 21 international may be in contention to start if Dean Marney is still struggling with a hamstring problem, although Dyche is hopeful that David Jones may be available after a thigh injury.

“It was a disappointing result, a bad day at the office for us, but we’ll keep improving and keep learning as much as we can from it,” he said.

“Everyone is disappointed but we don’t really beat ourselves about too much because the games come thick and fast, so we’ve got to start thinking about next week.

“You’ve got to just keep focused and start with a plan for the next game, but also take in as much as you can from the last.”