SEAN Dyche has rubbished Chelsea's David Luiz's claims that Burnley played "anti-football" when they left Stamford Bridge with a point.

Burnley hit the all important 40-point mark to move nine points and 17 goals clear of 18th place Cardiff City.

Jeff Hendrick's opener was cancelled out by N'Golo Kante and then Gonzalo Higuain quickly gave Chelsea the lead, before Ashley Barnes levelled proceedings.

"Well, with a £58m wage bill, and making the most of players and trying to find a way to get 40 points in the Premier League, coming to venues like this, I'm pretty pleased to be fair, and delighted with the players," said Dyche.

"They've been first class, 28 points in 16 games, you can't anti-football that. I'm telling you now, it's impossible, you have to play some football to get 28 points in 16 games."

Captain Tom Heaton was booked after half an hour for time wasting, but Dyche insisted: "I believe Tom Heaton's booking was the earliest in the season for time wasting, and that solves it, so there can't be any more time wasting.

"That's our 48th game of the season, so if we've got players going down with cramp, with the amount of injuries we've had, a lot of these players have played virtually every minute.

"I don't know how you could question that at this stage of the season, especially when the weather turns like this."

The final stages saw Chelsea vent their frustrations as Maurizio Sarri was sent off, while there were angry scenes as Billy Mercer was confronted by the injured Antonio Rudiger.

Luiz raised his hands to Barnes after a pitiful first half dive in front of the Bunrley boss, continued to let his frustrations be known.

Dyche added: "I was over clapping our fans, they've been amazing, it's Bank Holiday Monday, we more or less filled it, the club made a gesture as well, which is great, by the time I turned round, there was something going off on the edge of the pitch - I still haven't worked out what - and I went down the tunnel and it was more of the same.

"We are allowed to get a point every now and again at these places..."

Nothing is secured yet, but Burnley would have to lose all three of their games and Cardiff win theirs, with a massive turn in goal difference, to send Burnley down.

"I think I work on facts, and I believe we're in a very, very super-strong position, but you've got to work on facts," Dyche said.

"But that's a big marker, 40 points, we know where that lives in the Premier League historically, but we've got to see it through obviously.

"I'm extremely proud, really, really important we could get that last point, that 40th point, we all know that, very tough place to come to, and I thought they were terrific, the first half an hour they were outstanding.

"We scored a goal but they responded, they go 2-1 up and they're in control of the game, without doubt.

"So many technically good players, and we had to stay diligent to the cause.

"We did, and then we nick a second, and the game calmed slightly before half-time.

"I thought we started the second half quite well, but as we know, we've had to back in, camp in and defend properly to get that last point, and the players deserve a lot of credit for that."