SEAN Dyche said he would ‘never forget’ Andre Gray’s contribution to the Burnley cause, but admitted the Clarets had been unable to match the deal on offer to the striker at Watford.

Gray’s two-year stay at Turf Moor ended this week when he moved to Vicarage Road for £18million, having rejected a ‘substantially improved’ deal to remain at the Clarets earlier in the summer.

Dyche admitted that Burnley had been unable to compete with the Hornets financially and said he was in ‘constant debate’ with the chairman and the board over how far they can push the wage structure at Turf Moor.

“Whichever way you look at it, players still need to earn money and get offered good contracts,” Dyche said. “We couldn’t get to a level which was enough.

“They (Watford) made it very clear they wanted the player, through finance, I think the player’s life is heading in that direction, down south. That’s only an add on, not why he moved.

“It’s football, life, finance, age. He’s had a massive journey from six or seven years ago, almost beyond his wildest dreams.

“I never forget what people have done for me and the club, and he’s certainly done his fair share, same as Michael Keane, David Jones, George Boyd, many players.”

Dyche admitted to difficulty in knowing how far to stretch the wage budget at Burnley, with a pay rise for one established star likely to lead to others requesting similar increases.

“That’s a club that were willing to go to those numbers to get him and then pay that contract over five years,” he said of Gray’s move to Watford.

“This club at this money are not willing to do that. The way we work here, the good side of it, is that the group of players who are the main players are very close in contractual terms. When do you break that open?

“When that happens the others will want to go higher as well. It’s not shifting one, it’s shifting the whole lot. When do you break through and have the financial and mental capacity to push it up there?

“You have to be ready for that or else we’ve seen the chaos that can come after it. It sounds like you’re crying it in but it’s tough.”

While Keane’s departure this summer was to an Everton side who finished seventh last season, Gray has moved to a club who finished below Burnley last year.

“With all due respect are Watford bigger than us? Not really,” Dyche said.

“There owners have a different business model, they’re more open minded to the buying and selling, they carry vast squads. They’re more used to it.

“This club has been dragging for years financially. We’ve got ourselves into a really good financial shape and now it’s ‘grip hold of it and don’t let it go’. It’s a cultural thing here I think.”

Dyche said he had been involved in the discussions over Gray’s future and a potential new deal at the ‘key moments’, but said a shift in wage structure had to be done for the ‘right reasons’.

The Burnley boss said the club would continue to be operating at the same market level unless there was a ‘radical change’ over salaries.

“There are jumps in the league in contracts, and that’s difficult for the club,” Dyche added. “There’s a constant debate with the chairman over where it needs to go.

“It’s not something new. It’s the truth, it’s where it is. Unless it radically changes, you’re shopping at a certain level of the market.”

But Dyche is happy to see players continuing to develop at Turf Moor, with Keane and Gray departing for up to £48million this summer, having cost just £8million to bring to the club.

“Money spent, compared to money earned, those two players’ games improved,” he said. “We are still developing players.”