Sunday 1 February 2015 14:18, UK
Burnley manager Sean Dyche was not too despondent following the 2-0 defeat to fellow-strugglers Sunderland on Saturday.
The Clarets left Wearside sitting just one place and a single point above the relegation zone, on a day when few of their players performed to their capabilities.
But Dyche concedes such occasions will inevitably end in defeat as the club do not have the resources to deal with poor performances.
Dyche said: "That is life in the Premier League. We have been learning, we are improving, I am sure of that, over the season. We are still on good shape.
"I always remind you people thought we would need snookers at Christmas and we didn't, and we are still active.
"It's a learning curve for these players on a weekly basis and it's another big reminder that you have to be on top of your game for every minute, certainly when you are us. We can't come away from our performance levels and we had too many down.
"At any level of football, it's improbable that every player on your team plays at the top level of their performance every week. But we can't carry threes and fours if they are not on their levels.
"Others can. If you are Chelsea, maybe Arsenal, Manchester United et cetera, if they have three or four players who are well below par, they can still carry that. We need everyone at it all of the time."
