SCOTT Arfield has hailed the Burnley board for sticking by Sean Dyche in his early months at the club as the Clarets chief prepares to celebrate four years in charge at Turf Moor on Sunday.

Arfield arrived on a free transfer from Huddersfield in Dyche’s first summer at the club which came after the Turf boss won just 11 of his first 34 games in charge following his appointment on October 30, 2012.

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Since then the Canada winger, who struck his 20th goal for the club in Saturday’s win over Everton, has noticed the evolution of the squad, something he believes is helped by keeping Dyche in the dugout.

Asked how crucial the continuity had been in Burnley’s success in recent seasons, Arfield said: “It is vitally important. When you see so many managers coming into with six months, eight months and even a year it takes so long to (get it right).

“I think the gaffer was here six months before I was here. But you could always see the core of the team and it was evolving.

“Since I have been here it has been the same everybody has been on the same page thinking and it takes time to get that. I don’t think he’s under any sort of pressure as such as he has taken this club to the Premier League twice.”

Arfield is one of numerous survivors of the Clarets’ first Premier League season under Dyche two years ago.

That promotion, when Burnley finished second behind Leicester, was achieved despite Dyche operating under one of the lowest budgets in the Championship, and they fell only one position short of Premier League survival in 2013/14, finishing 18th.

Tom Heaton, Ben Mee, Michael Keane, Stephen Ward, Dean Marney, Michael Kightly, George Boyd, Ashley Barnes and Sam Vokes also featured in that campaign, and Arfield believes the shared experience of that campaign is helping the Clarets this time around.

“When you lose the Premier League (status) and you lose so many players it is back to square one so it was very important to keep the base of the team together,” the former Huddersfield Town man said.

“Except Tripps (Kieran Trippier) and (Danny_ Ings who left there was something like 14 players here who stayed. Day one of that pre-season we tried to get back here and we did it with some style in the end.”

While Arfield’s late strike against Everton secured a third win of the season at home for the Clarets they are still without a point on their travels.

They will look to end that this weekend but the task gets no easier with Saturday’s trip to Old Trafford to face Manchester United.

“It is going to be difficult,” said Arfield. “We have been a different team away from the one at home so it is up to us now to take that form from here away.

“We have to really have a go at them. There is no bigger stage.”