ASH OUT BUT IT’S ALL WELL AND GOOD

BURNLEY boss Sean Dyche will not recall in-form striker Nahki Wells despite his lack of firepower.

Ashley Barnes is still suffering from a groin injury while Jay Rodriguez also misses today’s trip to Chelsea due to flu.

But Dyche says he will wait for further tests on Barnes (below) before deciding whether to end Wells’s impressive loan spell at QPR.

Wells (above) has scored 12 times for the Championship side and helped himself to a hat-trick in a 6-1 hammering of Cardiff on New Year’s Day. Dyche said: “I don’t think we’ll interrupt him at this moment. It seems to be going well, but do you need to affect that?

“We try to be as honourable as we can and honour the contract if we say it’s for a season.

“But there’s always a break clause, to suit both teams and the player.

“We don’t know the situation with Barnesy and we’ve still got two and a half weeks to make the decision.

“At this early stage the medical team don’t think it’s a long-term thing, but it may need something doing so we’ll see then.”

Burnley, who have slumped to just four points above the drop zone, will pitch up at Stamford Bridge with Chris Wood as their only recognised striker.

Full-back Phil Bardsley is another flu victim and Dyche insists Rodriguez has been laid low.

He said: “He has been off all week and I think it’s real flu, not man flu or ‘person’ flu.

“He’s still got a temperature. It doesn’t mean he definitely won’t be fit, but it’s not like a one-day thing.

“It’s the usual stuff – high temperature and the rest of it.

“Players keep getting nearly back, and then get another knock. That’s just the way it is.”