Dwight all right like Silva
BURNLEY boss Sean Dyche has told Dwight McNeil to use Manchester City legend David Silva as his role model.
McNeil, 21, is enjoying another impressive season at Turf Moor, and the Clarets are likely to face a fight to retain his services in the summer.
But while two goals and five assists are not the kind of statistics that made Silva (below) such an Etihad favourite during a decade of service, Dyche believes McNeil is a highly-talented operator who has developed the same kind of work ethic as the Spanish World Cup winner.
Dyche said: “Open-mindedness has been the key for Dwight because he has to do a lot of work in our side.
“I sometimes hear people ask if he could get more assists and goals – but we ask an awful lot of him because he is a young player operating in one of the toughest leagues in the world, in a team that has to work for every single inch.
“But that will stand Dwight in good stead in the future.
“I’m a massive fan of David Silva. I thought he was incredible for Man City in terms of the amount of work he put in, the press, the way he dealt with the ball and without the ball.
“Top players do top things like that – and it’s the basis that Dwight is learning here.
“If he was with another club that had more of the ball then perhaps he could have a bit more freedom.
“But it’s not going to do Dwight any harm at all to learn that you’ve got to work really hard when you play for Burnley.
“Hard work should be the basis for all players.
“The best players are not just the most talented, they are usually the fittest, they work the hardest, they go into the most detail and they look after themselves.
“Dwight is a real team player. It is something he has really improved at during the time he’s been at the club.”