BURNLEY boss Sean Dyche felt his side were not a “million miles” away in their defeat against West Ham.  

Chris Wood gave the Clarets the lead with a 19th-minute penalty – the New Zealander’s seventh goal in seven – but the Hammers hit back two minutes later with Michail Antonio equalising before he then put them ahead just before the half hour mark. 

David Moyes’ side had several chances to add to their lead but by not taking them offered Burnley hope, with Josh Brownhill bringing an excellent save from Lukasz Fabianski before Jay Rodriguez flashed a shot wide.

But the Clarets could not avoid matching an unwanted club record as they made it eight top-flight home games without a win.

“It was a strange one,” Dyche said. “I don’t think we were a million miles off our marks.

“West Ham delivered a strong performance and they’re chasing the Champions League spots for a reason. They’re a good outfit and they’ve shown that so I wasn’t overly critical of my players.

“We tried to make a game of it, both teams played at a real tempo but they affected the game with a bit more quality on transition in particular. They’ve grown into a good unit and made good use of their purchases.”

After Fulham and West Brom both failed to win this weekend, Burnley look comfortable as they sit nine points above the drop zone with four left to play ahead of next Monday’s trip to Craven Cottage.

“It looks no more tasty than it did at the beginning of the season,” Dyche said of the fixture. “Our mentality is the same whoever we play.”