SEAN Dyche has backed Michael Keane to become a ‘great player’ after the defender signed a three-and-a-half-year deal with the Clarets.

The 21-year-old is making his loan switch from Manchester United permanent after the two clubs agreed an undisclosed fee, understood to be in the region of £2million.

He becomes Dyche’s first signing of the January transfer window, and one player who the manager insists won’t be leaving this month is Danny Ings.

The striker has been linked with a host of Premier League clubs, with his contract due to expire at the end of the season and no new deal in place.

But Dyche insists the club have not had any bids for their star man and added he is ‘not for sale’ even if they had.

Keane has spent the last four months on loan at Turf Moor and has started the last nine Premier League games in the absence of Michael Duff.

“He likes the environment and is enjoying his football which is always a priority, particularly for young players who want to enjoy what they are doing,” said the Burnley manager.

“And I think he knows he is in a place where he can grow and that’s important.

“It’s hard to be out there active as a young centre-half and he is active and he is playing and I think he knows that’s an important factor. I think he feels this is a good place to come and continue learning about what he wants to be.

“And that’s not just a good player. He wants to be a great player like a lot of young players do and that’s the right mindset, I believe.”

Stockport-born Keane, who has 17 England Under-21 caps, has spent 12 years at Old Trafford, with previous loan spells at Leicester, Derby and Blackburn.

Dyche has followed his progress for a while, first watching him during his first spell away from United at Leicester.

“I have known him for a long time,” he said, “I’ve seen him for a long time and when you get up close and personal working with him daily you realise he’s the right character, not just as a player but he is conscientious, he wants to learn and I do see real development in him.

“I think he can become a very, very important player for us and beyond, somewhere down the line.”

Keane also caught Dyche’s eye when he made his Blackburn Rovers debut last season in Burnley’s 2-1 win at Ewood Park.

Although he has had to leave one of England’s biggest clubs to get regular first team football, Dyche doesn’t think that precludes Keane from returning to those heights one day.

“Man United are signing players for £65m so you’ve got to be pretty handy if you are going to walk into that team without them signing another player,” he said.

“They can have different way of going up the ladder. Ingsy and Sam Vokes and Trips and Ben are good signs of that, playing in the Premier League with Burnley.

“There are different ways of getting to the same outcome.”

Keane, who turns 22 on Sunday, the same day Duff celebrates his 37th birthday, admitted it had been a ‘big decision’ to leave Old Trafford.

“If you’re coming through at a club like Manchester United you can stay there a bit too long,” he said.

“I think it’s the right time and I’ve spoken to a lot of people in the game who agree with me about signing on here.”

On the future of Ings, Dyche said: “There have been no bids and the club have always made it clear he’s not for sale.

“He is in a good place. He’s a young man earning, his spurs, still developing and still learning at arguably the highest level of football.”