Burnley have returned to the Premier League after a minor hiatus and their first game of the 2023/24 season will be against Manchester City.
Vincent Kompany will host his former team and the reigning English champions on Friday night at Turf Moor and if the Clarets can somehow cause an upset then it will set the perfect tone for the rest of the 37 matches to come.
Obviously, the primary target for any promoted team will be to avoid an immediate relegation and remain in the top flight for another season but Kompany has refused to set such a mediocre target for his Burnley team.
“I can’t say 17th[position] is the target, I’m absolutely incapable of pronouncing these words but if that’s the case, there will probably be celebrations at the club,” the Burnley manager has told the That’s Football podcast(h/t Burnley Express).
“But my focus is on asking the players and making sure the players don’t put a ceiling on anything they achieve. At the start of the season, we have different bank accounts with the clubs at the top but in reality, we start with the same amount of points, so get better, that’s what I tell my team and we’ll see where I finish.”
Burnley’s team news and injuries:
Burnley have been heavy spenders this summer as they have splashed out around €65 million so far. Kompany’s team finished top of the Championship table last season losing just three matches but the manager knew very well that he needs to bring in some quality players who can help Burnley remain in the Premier League.
The Clarets have brought in goalkeeper James Trafford from Manchester City for a fee of around €17 million and the 20-year-old will be pushing to replace Arijanet Muric in goal. For Friday, we think Muric is going to remain as the No 1.
Burnley have also signed Dara O’Shea from Championship side West Brom but against Manchester City, the pairing of Jordan Beyer and Hjalmar Ekdal will start in central defence.
Ian Maatsen has returned to Chelsea and since the club haven’t signed a left-back yet, Charlie Taylor should feature in the starting XI on Friday night.
Burnley have brought in Nathan Redmond as a free agent and the 29-year-old should play out on the right wing with Anass Zaroury operating on the left-hand side.
Weghorst has moved to Germany on a loan spell but the club have brought in two centre-forwards so the attacking department has properly reinforced. Burnley have brought in Michael Obafemi from Swansea but he is currently out with a hamstring injury which means loan signing Lyle Foster is in line to start. Jay Rodriguez scored 10 goals last season so he will also be in line to start but we think Vincent Kompany will want to use the 22-year-old Foster.
One of the new forwards is Zeki Amdouni who’s arrived from FC Basel and the 22-year-old is primarily a centre-forward but can also play as a No 10. It remains to be seen in which role is the Clarets manager planning to use him.
Burnley predicted line up vs Manchester City:
Predicted Started XI(4-2-3-1): Arijanet Muric; Connor Roberts, Jordan Beyer, Ekdal/O’Shea, Taylor; Josh Brownhill, Cork; Amdouni, Redmond, Anass Zaroury; Foster/Jay Rodriguez.
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