SEAN Dyche hailed Kevin Long and Charlie Taylor for the way they responded to the first major setbacks of their Premier League careers.

Long and Taylor had difficult afternoons against Tottenham last weekend as a Harry Kane hat-trick helped Spurs to a 3-0 win at Turf Moor.

But the defensive duo, who have both recently come into the side as a result of suspension and injury, shook that blow off to impress in the 2-2 draw with Manchester United at Old Trafford.

Long, in particular, struggled against Tottenham, conceding the penalty that gave them the lead and struggling with the movement of Harry Kane. But he looked far more assured at Old Trafford against the physicality of Romelu Lukaku.

Long is only eight games into his top flight career while Taylor has only recently made his Premier League debut, coming in for the injured Stephen Ward, and Dyche believes showed strength of character to turn in assured performances against United on Boxing Day.

“He (Long) had a tough one the other day, but look at Tottenham, on their day, they can hurt anyone, especially with Kane in the form he’s in.

“That’s a big part of his and Charlie Taylor’s development, learning about the Premier League, but the mentality is so important, to go into the next game and say ‘that’s parked, we learn from it and move on’.

“I was really pleased with that."