WATFORD travel to Burnley on Tuesday looking to end a winless streak which was extended to six with defeat against Yeovil Town.
Whilst the Clarets begun the season in flying form, they have tailed off somewhat in recent weeks and – like Gianfranco Zola’s Hornets – were winless in November, recording three draws and a defeat in the process.
Second to the in-form Leicester, but ahead of third-placed Queens Park Rangers on goal difference, Burnley’s start to the season has taken all by surprise.
Their current four-match winless streak was preceded by eight straight Championship victories, and Saturday’s 2-1 defeat at Huddersfield was just their second in the league this term.
Losing last season’s top-scorer, Charlie Austin, to QPR was considered a crushing blow for former Hornets boss Sean Dyche, but the former centre-half has used the talismanic forward’s departure to his advantage.
Shorn of the 28 goals that Austin scored last season, Dyche refused to add another striker to his ranks, instead challenging existing forwards Sam Vokes and Danny Ings to step up and replace their former contemporary.
Both men have responded in kind, bagging 10 and 11 goals respectively at this stage of the season, putting them in the top five scorers in the division at this early stage.
Conversely though, neither man had set the world on fire prior to this season, with Vokes scoring just four goals last season and Ings bagging a meagre six in his two seasons at Turf Moor.
Another big factor in the Clarets’ success has been Dyche’s insistence on naming the same XI week-in, week-out, where possible.
In the age of rotation, the ‘Ginger Mourinho’ as he’s been dubbed by some less-than-imaginative Burnley supporters, has stuck one in the eye of conventional wisdom by sticking to his guns with team selection.
A quick glance at the Clarets’ squad statistics at present depicts a clear divide between the regular starters and those frequently utilised from the bench, with 11 names having made 12 or more league starts each and just handful having made four starts in the next bracket down.
Arguably the one thing which could well end up counting against Dyche’s men in the final promotion shake-up is the depth of the squad.
Whilst Burnley have been fortunate enough with injuries up to this stage, their luck will undoubtedly run out at some point – something Watford have spectacularly demonstrated since the last international break.
With only 17 senior outfield professionals at the club currently, Dyche will undoubtedly have to manoeuvre in the loan market at some point, but if his solitary season in WD18 was anything to go by, that is certainly one of his strong points.
One man who did link up with Dyche at the Vic’ and has followed his former boss to Lancashire is Stoke City winger Michael Kightly, who spent an impressive 12-game loan spell with the Hornets between 2011 and 2012 before his move to the Potteries from the Molineux.
The only team selection concerns Dyche will have to contend with on Tuesday are the injured Dean Marney and the suspended Michael Duff. Kevin Long should replace Duff at right-back, whilst Scott Arfield and David Edgar will battle it out to deputise for Marney once more.
Gianfranco Zola has considerably more issues to take into account with his team selection, with Essaid Belkalem, Tommie Hoban, Reece Brown, Almen Abdi and Ikechi Anya all injured.
Manuel Almunia missed Saturday’s defeat by Yeovil Town due to illness and Jonathan Bond will deputise again if the experienced Spaniard does not fully recover in time.
Likely line-ups:
Burnley: Heaton; Trippier, Long, Shackell (c), Mee; Arfield, Edgar, Jones, Kightly; Vokes & Ings.
Watford: Bond; Cassetti, Nosworthy, Ekstrand; Bellerin, Murray, Thorne, McGugan, Pudil; Forestieri & Deeney.
Kick-off: 19.45
Referee: Mr M Naylor
Commentary: BBC Three Counties & Hornets Player
Highlights: Hornets Player
