Burnley manager Sean Dyche has a gravelly voice because he used to eat earthworms, according to former teammate Soren Andersen.

The Clarets boss has made a name for himself in English football for both his exploits with the Lancashire club and for his eccentric yet gentlemanly personality.

Dyche's trademark gravelly tone is also a regular subject of conversation among the football community, and former Bristol City colleague Andersen has offered an interesting theory as to the origins of the Englishman's voice.

"He had exactly the same voice," the Dane told the Fodboldministeriet podcast. "Maybe the voice comes from eating rainworms (Danish term for earthworms), because every time we trained, he used to eat rainworms.

"Yes, he did. It was horrible, I've never experienced anything like it. It was like: 'whoops, there's a rainworm' and then he ate it. It was a bit disgusting and very strange. He was a good player, and I enjoyed being around him, but the thing with the worms was really strange.

"There was always these worms around. And everybody always commented on it as being disgusting and complained a bit. So I think maybe it was as a kind of a provocation, and to show us that it wasn't something, we should focus on or care about, he just ate one or two."

Burnley return to action on Saturday with a Premier League home game against Manchester United.