BURNLEY have widened their search for new players in the January transfer window after bringing in a European scout to target signings on the continent.

Clarets boss Sean Dyche has concentrated on bringing in players from closer to home since taking over at Turf Moor, with Burnley’s entire squad made up of signings from clubs within the United Kingdom.

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Dyche previously admitted that Burnley did not have the scouting structure to target players in Europe but extra funds from promotion to the Premier League have now allowed him to bring in a specialist scout, as the club look to strengthen their squad in January.

“We’ve got more scouts than we had previously so we’re in the market looking at all sorts of prospects,” said co-chairman John Banaszkiewicz.

“We have a European scout now so we’re trying to look at other horizons and look a bit further afield from the UK.”

Burnley have also been linked with a host of British names, including young Ipswich Town left back Tyrone Mings.

Dyche admits the Clarets have been playing catch-up in terms of scouting in comparison to other Premier League clubs.

Burnley found adding to their squad a real challenge in the summer, with asking prices from Championship clubs putting many targets out of their reach.

The Clarets failed in attempts to sign the likes of Watford’s Troy Deeney and Nottingham Forest’s Henri Lansbury.

"Our supersonic journey saw all the things that could and should be in place, that clubs have built slowly but surely over the years, put in place,” he said.

“It's been an unbelievable transformation within a three-month window.

"It includes a recruitment structure - the amount of people, which areas, widening our base to give us more information to hopefully improve the playing side of things.

"We've brought in players we think can demand, challenge. But we also want to bring in players that, it's fair to say, it can almost be a given they will improve you.

“It doesn’t bother me where the players are from, it’s how many I can get to choose from.

“If I need a midfielder, if there’s only four or five in our market in England, there might be 15 if we go into Europe.

"The numbers were unbelievable for Championship players we went in for in the summer - top end, earning unbelievable money, way more than we pay in the Premier League - and their clubs are far richer, usually because of the owners, asking for astronomical fees.

"A little bit more wasn't enough, trust me, you’re not talking about adding a million or two, it's tens of millions.

"There were three players we were in for, in the Championship, and over £20m was expected for those three. Only one had played in the Premier League.”

Dyche admits that the escalation in fees and wages has provided a real dilemma for Burnley.

The Clarets sold Charlie Austin to QPR for £4m a year ago – albeit largely because the striker only had a year left on his contract – but Fulham paid £11m to sign Ross McCormack from Leeds this summer.

“The McCormack one was the biggest shift in the market because everyone suddenly pre-supposed that if that’s Championship to Championship, if a Premier League club comes in then we raise the bar, so timing was probably unfortunate in this market this year,” he said.

“If you look at Charlie Austin and the money we got for him last year, compared to this year, it’s a radical difference.

"You're stuck in a very awkward predicament. If someone offered £50m in fees, you need the support base for those wages. If you're carrying those for three to four years, it can end in real trouble.

"Don't forget, my whole thinking is to win games, but last year we had to sell Charlie Austin.

“That's one year ago, and now we have the chance to not be in that position for many years as long as things are used wisely.

"But we still want to compete, we don't want to be a sob story.

"It's just very, very difficult.”