Okay let’s be honest Burnley do not play the most attracting football in England. Pep Guardiola has brought something special to the Premier League with his playing style out from the back. Now, most top teams tried and replicate Manchester City success this season but sometimes the old days is the best way to grab the three points.

Sean Dyche is completely opposite to modern day now. Maybe I was being a bit harsh. Burnley enjoy the ball at their feet but where they find success is in the air. Long balls is the best way to describe Dyche’s tactics and sometimes you just need to applaud it. The fact Burnley are 7th, two points behind Premier League winners Arsenal and are currently in Europa league spots deserve all the recognition they get. So why has it been such a success for Burnley?

Clinical Finishing

Stats don’t lie and it shows the finishing of Chris Woods, Ashley Barnes, and Sam Vokes is the reason for their position. The Clarets sit 15th on shots on target with just 109 where they have scored 33 goals with a 33% shot conversion rate. That figure does not seem high but when you compare it to relegation battlers Crystal Palace, they have scored 36 goals this campaign with 134 shots on target which shows why Palace are fighting for survival with a 28.6 % conversion rate. Six percent more with 30 fewer shots. If Burnley’s attackers were as wasteful as Chrisitan Benteke then Burnley would find themselves fighting for survival.

Style of Play

Best way to describe Burnley’s style of play – Long ball. But why is there such a negative feeling around it? Burnley have executed Sean Dyche’s plan to perfection almost every time and are the best of the best in Premier League. The Clarets play with two target strikers most games which results in long balls or crosses. And once again the stats do not lie as Burnley are the best team to play long passes, 200 more than Everton in second place. Crosses out-wide are not used much but can be an important part of breaking teams down.

This image is taken from West Ham vs Burnley game earlier this month. Whilst Burnley have possession in their own half their midfielders drop deep to collect the ball and look forward.

From that possession, the ball has found itself on the right-hand side looking straight for Barnes in the box. Burnley’s tactics of looking playing long to they two target men and wait to keep the ball whilst reinforcements arrive has been a huge success due to defenders being a lot weaker in the air and more like a midfielder with the feet.

Rock Solid Defence into Attack

Take away Burnley’s defence and then they will struggle to stay in this division. The Clarets back-four have been a force from August to now which is represented in the league table as the Northern club are third with the least goals conceded. Sean Dyche will face a tricky window once again to keep his main center-backs Ben Mee and new England international James Tarwoski, what has been the key to Burnley’s solid defence?

This picture was from West Ham vs Burnley earlier this month. As you can see the back four are all condensed and in a straight line to catch the attacker offside. These defenders are completely protected by their two deep-lying playmakers in Hendricks and Corks. The midfielders are perfectly placed for any loose ball on the edge of the box whilst also having enough time to clear any danger. However what makes this team ticks is how quickly the team counter-attacks when the ball is cleared to target man Chris Woods.

This image is from the exact same game against West Ham and is 30 seconds after that previous image. The ball has been played long to Woods, who has control down and kept the ball waiting for support. Ashley Barnes supports his fellow striker.

In the space of another 20 seconds, Woods is joined by five of his teammates, one is Jack Cork, who was defending across 40 seconds ago in his own 18-yard box. The determination from Sean Dyche’s men deserves every single ounce of credit and even funny point is that Burnley was already 2-0 up.

Just from that game, you can see Burnley’s determination and how they play throughout the whole game without any change of play. Burnley attack and defence are so balanced that any team that faces them cannot take them lightly without being punished on each end of the pitch.

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Image Taken from https://www.sportsmole.co.uk/football/premier-league/burnley-vs-leicester-city_game_62264.html