BURNLEY director Brendan Flood is hoping manager Sean Dyche is going nowhere but insists the club would not be “frightened” finding a replacement if and when the time comes.

The sought-after Clarets boss has been linked with a number of Premier League posts and fears of his Turf Moor departure heightened when he expressed his frustrations about players’ contracts running down and also an apparent lack of funds to strengthen his squad.

Jeff Hendrick, Aaron Lennon and Joe Hart were among four players to exit the club on free transfers, which left them short-handed for the season run-in following Project Restart and needing to find reinforcements in an uncertain transfer window.

However Dyche, who had been linked with the Crystal Palace post, played down rumours of a rift between him, club chairman Mike Garlick and the board.

“I had to chuckle because I heard somebody say the other night it’s the first time that Sean Dyche has questioned the board,” Dyche said at the time.

“I think most boards would be happy if they only got questioned every seven-and-a-half years.”

Whether he and the board have made up their differences remains to be seen but Flood says it is just “reality” that Dyche is linked with other clubs.

"We all love Sean," Flood told the Daily Mail. "He’s been brilliant for Burnley. We hope he wants to carry on.

"I think he’s deserving of interest from elsewhere. That’s the reality of football.

"If someone outperforms they get interest. If someone came and offered sufficient compensation then it would be Sean’s choice it’s a legal reality."

Flood says the club has a good record of appointing managers and is confident they would find a suitable replacement when the times comes.

"Should it happen it’s acceptable to receive compensation, reinvest and move on," he said. "We’ve made good decisions on managers on different occasions.

"We’d hate to have that problem but we wouldn’t be frightened of it because we’ve chosen good managers before.”