SEAN Dyche has hailed Joey Barton’s influence and attitude at Burnley after branding last week’s controversies as ‘pantomime stuff’.

Barton hit the headlines for a couple of off-the-ball clashes with Lincoln’s Matt Rhead and Terry Hawkridge during the FA Cup defeat at Turf Moor a week ago.

That drew criticism from some pundits but Dyche said he had no issue with what had gone on and described Barton as the best player on the pitch against the Imps ‘by an absolute mile’.

Barton is set for a sixth successive start for the Clarets at Hull City today and he has impressed on his return to the club after a spell with Rangers was cut short in November.

“Joey’s been terrific. I thought by a mile, by an absolute mile, he was the best player on the pitch last weekend, and I mean by a long margin, on both teams,” said Dyche.

“So he’s been absolutely fine. He’s in good nick, as you can see, and he’s definitely up for the challenges that come in front of us.”

Of the incidents during the FA Cup fifth round tie, Dyche added: “I think it’s pantomime stuff, myself. I’ve got to be honest.

“I’ve seen a lot more controversy around Joey than that. If that’s as far as it goes, I’ll be a happy man.

“At the end of the day, it’s just the way life is now. People should actually have been saying: What about the game? What about him?

“He was so far in front of everyone else on the pitch, it was incredible to look at. I really thought that. And I thought he was against Leicester as well. He was absolutely outstanding.”

Barton is set for his 50th Burnley appearance at the KCOM Stadium today and the incidents against the Imps was the first time in his Turf Moor career that he has been involved in anything even approaching controversy on the pitch.

So asked why some people would say Barton isn’t a good role model, Dyche said: “People judge it in different ways, don’t they? There are certain things down the years, people have different things happen in their lives.

“I’ve only really spoken about his time with me and Burnley. I’ve never really commented on his time away from us. That’s a whole different thing. Myself, my staff, the team, the players here, Burnley Football Club, then not a question mark for me.”

Barton is also revered by the Turf Moor faithful, who voted him supporters’ player of the year last season and are delighted to see him return to the club after heading to Ibrox in the summer.

“Well, I think he’s earned the right,” Dyche said of the fans’ support. “Last year, he was exceptional.

“He’s come back in this year and been absolutely terrific, around here, around the place, his demand, his will. He was head and shoulders against Leicester, I thought, against a side as good as Chelsea, not head and shoulders but right up there with the top performers on the day.”

Asked whether the pantomime now follows Barton around, Dyche joked: “That’s the way it goes. That’s just part of being Joey, I suppose.

“It could be a TV series, actually. Being Joey. It’d be interesting. Never a dull moment, unless he’s in here, training with me.”