SEAN Dyche has praised Jeff Hendrick's recent performances for the Clarets.

The Republic of Ireland midfielder has been on the receiving end of some criticism from fans recently, but Dyche is pleased with the role the 26-year-old is playing for his side.

Hendrick is often operating as a number 10 for Burnley, a role he has very little previous experience of, although he was in a more familiar central midfield role against Istanbul Basaksehir on Thursday night.

It was Hendrick who set up Burnley's winner for Jack Cork, and Dyche said: "Sometimes the fans can question Jeff, but I thought he was absolutely tremendous on Thursday."

The former Derby County man may still have his doubters within the fanbase, but he has the full backing of his manager.

Asked if he was unfairly criticised in some quarters, Dyche added: "No, sometimes people forget he’s a midfield player going into that No 10 slot and it takes time to develop in that role.

“It’s not an overnight thing. He’s not overly criticised. I just think sometimes fans get ‘come on, give us a bit more’.

“But I thought tonight he was excellent. I thought he was excellent as well down at Southampton. I only look at him tactically, it was nothing do with his performance.

“Fans have moments with players, just little windows. It’s not been too much. Sometimes people have questions about players, but I think the last couple of games, people have been pleased with his performances. I certainly have.”

Hendrick will likely operate in that role behind a lone striker against Watford at Turf Moor on Sunday as he continues to get to grips with the requirements.

“There’s not a time span on player development," Dyche said. "Some grip hold of a new concept, some take more time.

"Jeff is a relatively young player, especially in Premier League terms. He’s experienced in other terms. He’s still moulding himself into a real Premier League player and I think a few are.”

Dyche made six changes for the Europa League with Basaksehir and is likely to make a similar number as he returns to a more familiar side for the bread and butter of the Premier League.

“It’s certainly the key focus. The demands of being in the Premier League are very difficult but alongside that you’ve seen the way the players went about it on Thursday. There’s a desire to win games," the Clarets chief said.

“The will and demand is still a valid thing to have and we’ve got that in abundance and we showed that again, no matter what team we put out there.

“They will be ready.

“The fitness here is unbelievable, the players’ mental and physical fitness is absolutely fantastic so they’ll be ready for Sunday."

Although Dyche has rung the changes, he has no doubts about the fitness of his side.

“The fitness side of things, we were always high on that," he said.

"The mental motivation is already there and it has been for a long time, and the group demand is there.

"They’re all things that count, the rest of it outside the camp is all noise. It’s about your own team’s focus, the ability to drive forward no matter what’s put in front of them and I think we’re good at that.

"I’ll be going into Sunday believing these players will go again. They’ll play hard and do what they need to do to try and win a game."