Burnley

Burnley gave their Premier League survival hopes a huge boost with a vital victory to push bottom side Sheffield United further towards relegation.

A must-win game for both sides went the way of Vincent Kompany's men as clinical finishing allowed them to move just three points off safety, while Chris Wilder's side are now 10 points adrift.

The Clarets were second best for much of the first half with Arijanet Muric making crucial saves to keep his side in the contest, before they scored twice in the space of three minutes.

On-loan Jacob Bruun Larsen broke the deadlock on 38 minutes when his scuffed volley took a deflection and wrong-footed goalkeeper Ivo Grbic to dribble in at the near post.

In the next attack Burnley doubled their advantage courtesy of full-back Lorenz Assignon weaving through and poking home via Grbic's outstretched leg and the crossbar.

Muric made an outstanding save to deny James McAtee's strike which was bound for the top corner, but he could do nothing about Gustavo Hamer cutting inside and curling in a sumptuous finish to give Sheffield United hope.

But the visitors restored their two-goal advantage following Lyle Foster's tidy, first-time finish from Assignon's cross and substitute Johann Berg Gudmundsson added a delightful fourth for a thumping triumph.

Were you at the match or did you follow it from elsewhere?

How did you rate the side's performance, Sheffield United fans?

Burnley fans - let us know your thoughts on the game here

Follow all of the reaction here

There is three Premier League matches on Saturday, and we will bring you every moment.

All times are BST

BBC Radio 5 Live commentary:

• Luton v Brentford

Follow all of the action and reaction here

Chris Sutton is making predictions for all 380 Premier League matches again this season, against a variety of guests.

For this weekend's games, he takes on singer-songwriter and Arsenal fan Sam Tompkins.

Sutton's prediction: 1-2

Both of these teams have had a very similar habit in recent weeks of shooting themselves in the foot.

I felt for Clarets boss Vincent Kompany after Arijanet Muric's latest mistake gifted Brighton an equaliser last week. Kompany took James Trafford out of the team because of his form, or lack of it, but whoever he picks in goal, they keep costing Burnley points.

I actually think Burnley will get the job done this time, though. They beat Sheffield United 5-0 at Turf Moor earlier in the season and I am expecting them to come out on top again.

The Blades will give everything but Burnley will have a bit too much quality for them, and I'm afraid that's been the story of Sheffield United's season.

Sam's prediction: 1-0

This is probably Sheffield United's biggest game of the season. I don't think they are getting out of the bottom three, but a win here would give them a bit of confidence.

Read the rest of their predictions here

Image source, PA Media

Burnley boss Vincent Kompany feels they are "running out of games" to save their Premier League season.

The Clarets, who sit 19th in the table, face bottom-side Sheffield United on Saturday.

It is seen as a must-win game for both of the promoted sides if they are to keep their slim hopes alive of avoiding an immediate return to the Championship.

"If you were to draw a line and restart the league almost at this calendar year, I think this team is on the way to becoming hopefully an interesting proposition for this league," Kompany said.

"But we're running out of games so it has to happen in the next [five].

"We're still nowhere near getting the results we think we could. The games are decided in the final third and it's been on a knife-edge. That's where you want it because it gives us a chance.

"[Since] the start of the season we've had valuable additions in January, we've recovered a few players as well. It's been fine margins for a while now, that's the nature of the league."

Kompany's side have not left the relegation zone all campaign after a slow start, but they have picked up some form recently having lost only one of their past six.

"The biggest thing for me is this season, the amount of times at the end of the game we're sat in the staff room and looked at ourselves and said 'How did we not come away with a win or a point?"' he added.

"That's been the season. We can pin it down to some key moments. But we can look back as much as we want. It's about the five games in front of us."

Image source, Getty Images

Burnley manager Vincent Kompany has issued a rallying cry to his players before Saturday's Premier League game at fellow strugglers Sheffield United.

The Clarets are looking to do the double over the Blades, after a 5-0 win at Turf Moor in December.

"This could be a game of fear or a game of no fear," Kompany said.

"Our approach is no fear - go for it. We've had good performances and bad performances this season, but our goal is to take on the game the way we feel it should be approached.

"It's a privilege to be in this league and to be able to showcase all the good things about our team at this level. It's brought us closer to results, doing that, and we hope it's something that on the day we can achieve.

"I don't see how a draw is good for either team. If it was a draw on Saturday it will be in other places they'll be happy about the result."

Nat Hayward
BBC Sport journalist

Burnley boss Vincent Kompany has been speaking to the media before Saturday's trip to face Sheffield United in the Premier League (15:00 BST kick-off).

Here are the key lines from his news conference

• Kompany confirmed he "shouldn't have too much change from the last game" in terms of injuries and midfielder Josh Brownhill is "not out of contract" this summer.

• On his team's recent performances: "For the first 10, 12 games it was too often teams could pull away from us. We had to change a few things and, from that moment onwards, we've been nearly in every game. It looks like we're closer to results recently but it's still the same thing of rewarding our performances. We've been good but we could have had a lot more points."

• On his goalkeeper situation after Arijanet Muric's two high-profile errors in their past two games: "Not a difficult position at all. I've had the type of season where I've had to back my players. It's not an issue of talent but you can't force consistency. It's the nature of the season we're in. We've supported Traffs [James Trafford] when he's made mistakes and we will do the same with Muro [Muric]."

• Kompany conceded his side must win at Bramall Lane: "It's been a must-win for a while for us now, but I guess you get down to the wire. It's a must-win game for both teams, for sure."

• On Saturday's opponents: "They've had a change of manager, of course. There are differences there. At the same time, from our side, we don't have anything to lose. It's going to have that little bit of a cup final feel to it. We should embrace that."

• On keeping faith in the fight for survival: "We've been written off about 15 games ago. We're still there. We're still fighting. You have to force your own luck and have belief, no fear and attack the game."

Follow the rest of Thursday's football news

Here are the key facts before Sheffield United host Burnley in the Premier League on Saturday (15:00 BST).

• Sheffield United have conceded 84 goals in their 32 Premier League games this season. That is the most at this stage of a top-flight campaign since Ipswich Town in 1963-64 (85), and the most the Blades have conceded in a league campaign since 1954-55 (86 in 42 games).

• Burnley have dropped 24 points from winning positions in the Premier League this season, with only Brentford (30) losing more. Meanwhile, Sheffield United have let 17 points slip when winning this term, only losing more in 1993-94 (25).

• Despite no team using more players in the Premier League than United this season (33), no side has had fewer different goalscorers than the Blades (10, excluding own goals).

• Burnley’s Zeki Amdouni has been substituted off in 86% of his league appearances this season (25/29), the highest share of any player to play at least 20 games in Premier League history.

• Sheffield United’s Oli McBurnie has been involved in eight goals in his past eight Premier League home games, scoring six and assisting twice. The only game in this run in which he has not registered a goal or assist was in the Blades’ 6-0 defeat by Arsenal last month.

Pat Nevin
Former Chelsea and Everton winger

Image source, Getty Images

Oddly, I used to like to play in goals during training when I was a player. I was OK, but at 5ft 6in (1.67m) tall it was never going to be my alternative position in the professional game. I knew I was not big enough or good enough for that specialist position.

I say this so that keepers do not get riled with me when I say that, 99.9% of them, are not good enough to be top-level outfield professionals. The problem is that they are continually asked to be just that now.

Burnley v Brighton underlined this perfectly. It is a fast growing list of keepers who are being closed down and then losing goals, simply because they are not good enough footballers. Brighton’s Bart Verbruggen joined Burnley's Arijanet Muric against Everton and Sheffield United’s Ivo Grbic against Liverpool, an error I mentioned just last week.

The reason why Verbruggen did not just come out and pick up the ball up in his box, is because he is being asked to think like an outfield player, but the gap between being not bad and being a top pro is an almighty chasm.

Muric then had a howler that an 11-year-old outfield player would be embarrassed by. With this second aberration in two weeks, Burnley’s chances of staying in the Premier League all but crashed and burned.

This is not a stinging rebuke to him or any goalkeeper. They are being asked to do a job most are not equipped for, and so goals will continue to be pointlessly lost and will probably get even more frequent.

Pat Nevin was writing for the BBC Football Extra newsletter

Natalie Bromley
Fan writer

If there was ever a moment this season that evidenced the problem with this Burnley side, it was when Arijanet Muric, under no pressure from any Brighton attack, decided to stop the ball with his studs on wet grass, let the ball roll under his foot and into the back of his own net.

Burnley had just taken the lead through an enforced goalkeeper error, after Josh Brownhill piled some pressure on a Brighton side pretty much done for the year. At that point, we were optimistic that we were finally going to be the beneficiaries of some luck.

But no, we pressed the self-destruct button once more and found an even more ludicrous way to lose a lead - I give up.

Despite conceding two horror goals in two consecutive games, I would still keep Muric in the team. He is prone to some howlers, and you have to balance risk and reward with him, but the team just looks more attacking-focused and confident with him in it.

His distribution (Everton aside) is excellent, his quick pass removes so much pressure from his back four, and quite frankly the problems this side has had this season can be distributed far wider than the goalkeeping team.

With Kompany sidelined through suspension, I thought Craig Bellamy spoke very well after the game. It was an honest reflection but one full of optimism, something I have no problem with.

A leadership team should keep the focus on survival until it is mathematically impossible. That is what I expect of them.

Just... well, maybe someone can tell Craig that rainbows are, in fact, very real?

Natalie Bromley can be found on the No Nay Never podcast, external

We asked for your views on Burnley's 1-1 draw with Brighton on Saturday.

Here are some of your answers:

Burnley fans

Owen: Thought we played really well up until Muric’s mistake. People are quick to slander him after today but he is a class keeper and has saved us the past few games. To win games we need to score more, which we are incapable of. Our attack is a mess. We got really lucky with the goal today. But I will take a point and on to the next.

Lisa: We played good football but - yet again - one mistake cost us. It’s the headline of our whole season. Muric has cost us the last two games. Trafford needs to be in the starting line-up next match, along with senior players from last season who have earned their stripes and know how to deal with the pressure at this level. Let’s finish with some pride.

Barry: Everything considered, another one that was close but no cigar. I think Muric did more things right than the one error so no blame on him from me. Unfortunately it was just another glaring example of what we have lacked all season which predominantly is a true goalscorer. We still have 15 points to play for so keep the faith and UTC.

Brighton fans

Hugh: Poor performance. Too many players missing through injury but Roberto de Zerbi seems no longer interested in the job, which has affected morale across the squad.

Bob: Another poor result and we are turning into a very mediocre season. It's clear all our players are already on the beach. The policy of trying to walk the ball into the net is just boring now.

David: The same problem we have had for some time now, 20 shots and not one goal scored by a Brighton player. We do not have the players who are capable of walking the ball into the net and the management do not seem to be able to adapt. Will buying new forwards for next year solve the problem? I think not unless they come up with a new team strategy.

Gary Lineker introduces highlights and analysis from Saturday's six Premier League fixtures.

If you missed Match of the Day, you can catch up on the action on BBC iPlayer.

Listen back to Saturday's BBC Radio 5 Live and 5 Sports Extra match commentary in full:

Manchester City v Luton Town

Bournemouth v Manchester United

Burnley assistant coach Craig Bellamy spoke to BBC Match of the Day after the Clarets' draw with Brighton: "We played really good in the first half. We played between the lines and moved it round when we needed to. Created good chances but at this level you have to make the most of those moments. First half we were disappointed not to come in with the lead."

On possible penalty: "I don't think it was a penalty personally. I thought it was a good decision by the referee.

On goals: "The goal gave us an opportunity to get the three points which we desperately need at this moment.

"That's [Muric error] our doing as coaches. This is what we expect, this is how we play. We expect the goalkeeper and demand that the goalkeeper can get it out of his feet. On this occasion it didn't go for us but we don't look at it as the goalkeeper's mistake. We take full responsibility for it.

"It's fine. We crack on again. They recover tomorrow and then we work again this week and set ourselves up to get three points on Saturday."

On bouncing back when dropping points: "We've done it all year. We're positive people anyway. Maybe naive, but positive. Enjoying this league still to this present moment even though it's difficult. The appetite to come in Monday, with good performances has helped. We're realistic to know results matter but the belief the players have and the belief we have in them takes care of itself. We're beyond positive and still feel there's an opportunity to be able to do something."

On Vincent Kompany return next week: "We missed him today. We miss his presence. My voice will be thankful he's there next week!"

Jess Anderson
BBC Sport journalist

Image source, PA

Burnley boss Vincent Kompany has often talked this season about his side playing better than their opponents, but those good performances mean nothing if not reflected in results.

Burnley have lost a club-record 11 of their 17 Premier League home matches this season and failed to score in 12 of their 33 league games - the most of any team in the top flight.

After two glorious chances in the first half were missed by Jacob Bruun Larsen and David Datro Fofana, Jay Rodriguez went close in the second period and defensively Burnley were solid.

But, leading games before capitulating through needless errors has been the story of their season - 24 points dropped from leading positions evidence of that.

They will see this as two points lost rather than one gained with tough games against Manchester United and Tottenham on the horizon.

As things stand, a point is likely not enough to give Burnley any real hopes of survival and the crestfallen reaction of their players at full-time suggested they also thought that to be the case.

• Burnley are now unbeaten in three consecutive home Premier League games (W1 D2), after losing 11, drawing two and winning one of the previous 14 this season.

• Since their debut season in 2017-18, Brighton have benefited from 17 own-goals in the Premier League, a figure bettered only by Tottenham (25) and Liverpool (18) in that time.

• Burnley have dropped 24 points from leading positions in the Premier League this season, with only Brentford (30) dropping more.

• All 236 of Brighton captain Lewis Dunk’s Premier League appearances have come as starts, with only four outfield players posting a better 100% starting record (Gareth Southgate 426, Paul Ince 306, Des Walker 264, Gary Pallister 261).

• Burnley’s Josh Brownhill has been directly involved in two goals in his past three Premier League appearances (1 goal, 1 assist), as many as he managed in his 16 before that.

A calamitous mistake by goalkeeper Arijanet Muric prevented Burnley from securing a vital Premier League win over Brighton at Turf Moor.

One week after the Kosovan's mistake handed Everton a 1-0 victory over Vincent Kompany's side, Muric allowed a simple backpass from his team-mate Sander Berge to roll under his heel and into the net.

Josh Brownhill had given Burnley's chances of Premier League survival a glimmer of hope on 74 minutes when he nipped in to take advantage of a short backpass from Carlos Baleba and the ball cannoned in off the side of keeper Bart Verbruggen to give the home side the lead.

But just five minutes later Muric's error levelled proceedings and Burnley could not restore their advantage to take all three points.

The result leaves Brighton 10th in the Premier League while Burnley are still firmly rooted in the relegation zone, six points from safety.

Were you at the match or did you follow it from elsewhere?

Burnley fans - let us know your thoughts on the game here

How did you rate the side's performance, Brighton fans?

Follow all of the reaction here

Six matches make up Saturday's Premier League action, and we will bring you every moment.

BBC Radio 5 Live match commentaries:

• Man City v Luton

• Bournemouth v Man Utd

All times BST

Follow BBC Radio 5 Live commentaries and live text updates here

Chris Sutton is making predictions for all 380 Premier League matches again this season, against a variety of guests.

For this weekend's games, he takes on actor and Leyton Orient fan Daniel Mays.

Sutton's prediction: 1-1

Looking at the table, Burnley will probably need four wins from their final six games to have any chance of staying up. That's the same number of victories as they have managed from their first 32 matches, so it's going to be a big ask.

They might get something here, though. I can't make my mind up about Brighton's form this season and, based on what he has said, it feels like Seagulls boss Roberto de Zerbi is off in the summer.

Burnley manager Vincent Kompany has been talking about his side's past six games and how they deserved to win more than one of them, on balance of play. Will this be their time to start a late winning run? I am going to say no.

Daniel's prediction: 0-0

See the full list of predictions here