Dyche rues refereeing decisions in opening day defeat

Burnley boss Sean Dyche has put the blame on key refereeing decisions that left his team in the position to fall victim to a late winning goal from Swansea City midfielder Leroy Fer on Saturday.

Michael Keane came close to giving the hosts the lead in the second half at Turf Moor on their Premier League return after getting on the end of a corner delivery, but the Clarets boss believes that he was impeded while trying to do so.

Despite pressing on after the break and forcing Swansea goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski into regular action, it was the home side who came to regret their numerous missed opening day opportunities, falling to their first league defeat since Boxing Day.

“I’m a little bit aggrieved that we didn’t get Michael Keane’s one,” Dyche told reporters.

“I think it was a really obvious one, particularly for the linesman. We didn’t get much going for us last time on decisions and there was a big one today.

“Keane’s got a header on the back stick from two yards and he can’t quite make it because the lad has quite obviously got hold of his shirt.

“We saw it, I don’t know how the linesman can’t see it, but it didn’t get given.”

Dyche also had a strong opinion on diving, highlighting that certain actions from Swansea players at Turf Moor can put the Premier League in a bad light.

“I try to get my lads not to fall on the floor, which I think there were a number of them today that were interesting,” Dyche said. 

“We try and do things properly but it’s harsh when you don’t get those decisions – you’re damned if you do, damned if you don’t.

“It’s only because it is a fantastic league and a fantastic product, I’ve been in it before and I want it to be that.

“We’re not new to it, we have experienced it two years ago, so we’ll have to hope the referee and linesman are aware of how we go about our business and they give us decisions.”