Burnley

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Burnley manager Vincent Kompany said he has taken "immense joy" in seeing Lyle Foster return to action in recent weeks following a spell away from the game to receive treatment for a mental health issue.

The Clarets said in November that Foster was "in the care of specialists" and the South Africa forward missed eight games.

He scored in Saturday's 3-2 loss at Aston Villa, after which Kompany said: "[My feeling is] immense joy very specifically for Lyle Foster's situation. We were dealing with a human tragedy really... such a good lad as well.

"To see him get back up, and just enjoying the game - not even the goal, just enjoying the game - being out there on the pitch with his team-mates, smiling after the game. For me, I can go away from being a manager, just as a human being, I'm really happy to be part of this moment.

"When you go through this at a club, as human beings, and you see him come out the other end of it, all I hope is he is going to stay like this. That's all I want. I can take a lot of joy out of witnessing it."

Image source, Getty Images

Shamoon Hafez, BBC Sport

Southampton are one of a number of sides interested in a January loan move for Burnley winger Manuel Benson.

The 26-year-old was a star performer in the Clarets' Championship title triumph last season, but has found game time in the Premier League a struggle, making only four appearances.

Now the Saints are looking to see if they can agree a deal for the Belgian, but BBC Sport understands Burnley will not be sanctioning a move to St Mary's.

Nathan Tella was on loan at Turf Moor from Southampton last season, scoring 19 goals for the club, but a permanent deal could not be agreed for the Nigeria international and he ended up joining Bayer Leverkusen.

Southampton are third in the Championship, three points adrift of an automatic promotion place, and Benson could add firepower to a side aiming for an immediate return to the top flight.

With the transfer window about to open again, we want to know what business you think Burnley need to do.

Who should they buy? Who should they sell? And who should they keep?

Have your say here

We asked you for your thoughts after Aston Villa and Burnley battled it out at Villa Park.

Here are some of the top comments:

Aston Villa fans

Steve: Joint top - unbelievable. Living the dream. Don't know how long it will last but enjoying the ride. If we learn to keep clean sheets and take chances, who knows?

Will: These are the kind of games that define a season. We passed the test. We are still in this race.

Tim: Glad for the win but we have been found out by other teams now. We should be taking three points every time against the bottom clubs. Defence was tired and shaky and Watkins was not getting enough service. Maybe get some fresh blood in the transfer window.

Mary: After missing so many good chances we got lucky with a soft penalty and a much-needed three points. Our defensive high line continues to create nervous tension, but in Unai we trust.

Burnley fans

BGS: Overall, generally very good across the park compared with a few other away performances. Looked reasonably solid, albeit they carved us open a number of times and on another day we’d have been buried. We’re a miles better team with Foster and Odobert in the side as they offer a direct threat. Remain positive though as I think we’ll nick a few wins in the second half of the season.

Jack: Must admit, 100% effort - even though that's not good enough. Sorry Kompany, I'm now saying what many said of Dyche. Change or go - stop being so stubborn.

George: Foster, Vitinho and Trafford - brilliant. The ref not so much. How is that not a handball? The performances are getting better, but is it enough? Not yet!

John: Once again robbed by a pitifully poor refereeing decision and lack of a genuinely analytical VAR review. We will go down this season not because of our performances but because of officials failing repeatedly to judge lesser teams as they do the bigger ones.

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 match commentaries in full on BBC Sounds:

• Aston Villa 3-2 Burnley

• Nottingham Forest 2-1 Manchester United

Image source, Getty Images

Burnley boss Vincent Kompany, speaking to MOTD: "Today is probably the most frustrated I've felt. I take a lot of pride in how we played but in terms of getting results it is is frustrating to see how this game played out.

"It won't make sense to anyone outside but I think I am the proudest manager in the league. I have no doubt they will bounce back from this and will keep going."

On Lyle Foster: "I don't know how he does it. I saw him when he was at his lowest point. It makes me emotional to think about it because it was a tragedy. To see him enjoying with the team I am happy for him."

On decisions made during the game: "Some of the things that are happening I don't understand. Against Forest we had a goal disallowed for handball that is lighter than this. I am trying to understand how these things happen. Everything was soft.

"I know we have to look at ourselves, we made some mistakes but we did some great things.

"I have played the game so I have an understanding when a player is trying to make something out of a situation. We got two yellow cards for the softest fouls ever, I cam blame my players for it but it happened on both sides but it wasn't handled the same way for both sides.

"Right now I feel sorry for the players, the fans and the clubs. It was such a good performance.

"I am not having a go at the referee, we all make mistakes, we made mistakes today, but you have to allow that. My understanding today was tested."

• Aston Villa have completed the league double over Burnley for the first time since 1925-26.

• Aston Villa have won more home games (17) and earned more home points (53) in the Premier League in 2023 than any other side.

• Burnley have lost 15 of their first 20 matches to a league season for the first time (W3 D2). Before this season, each of the three teams to lose 15 or more of their first 20 Premier League matches were all relegated – Sunderland in 2005-06, Derby in 2007-08 and Sheffield United in 2020-21 (the Blades have also lost 15 matches this season).

• Ollie Watkins has been directly involved in 32 Premier League goals in 2023 (21 goals, 11 assists). It’s the most by an Aston Villa player in a calendar year in the competition, and only Mohamed Salah (39) and Erling Haaland (38) have more this year.

• No team have received more red cards than Burnley (4) in the Premier League this season. 31% of their total reds in the competition have come in 2023-24 (4/13).

• Burnley’s Lyle Foster scored his fourth Premier League goal. Despite playing just 11 games he’s been directly involved in seven league goals this season (4 goals, 3 assists), three more than any other player for the Clarets.

Emma Smith, BBC Sport

They came mightily close and produced a fighting performance, but Burnley still cannot find a point after falling behind in a league game.

That will hugely frustrate Vincent Kompany, whose side dug in after being reduced to 10 men and came close to a very impressive draw.

The primary positives come through Lyle Foster, who looks fit and firing following his two-month mental health break.

The South African forward took his goal well and was only denied by a marginal offside call from putting Burnley ahead in the first half.

If Foster is fit and able to play through the rest of this season, Burnley will have a major boost to their chances of staying up.

But they must also be able to see out draws in games like this. Every point could matter in the fight against the drop.

Aston Villa moved level with Premier League leaders Liverpool as a late Douglas Luiz penalty secured victory against 10-man Burnley.

The Brazil midfielder converted from the penalty spot in the 89th minute after Jhon Duran was fouled by former Villa player Aaron Ramsey.

Burnley had twice come from behind in the game, with Lyle Foster scoring their second equaliser despite the visitors being reduced to 10 men following Sander Berge's second yellow card.

Moussa Diaby put Villa ahead again on 42 minutes after Leon Bailey's opener for Villa had been cancelled out by an almost immediate equaliser by Zeki Amdouni.

It leaves Villa on 42 points and behind Liverpool only on goal difference, with the Reds set to host Newcastle United on New Year's Day.

Vincent Kompany's Burnley, despite this battling performance, stay five points from safety.

What did you make of the match?

Aston Villa fans - How did you rate the team's performance?

Submit your post-match thoughts here, Burnley supporters

Follow all the reaction here.

There are six games being played in the Premier League on Saturday and we will bring you every moment of the action.

Follow all the incidents and reaction here.

All times are GMT.

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

For the fixtures taking place over the turn of the year, from 30 December to 2 January, he takes on Shed Seven singer and song-writer Rick Witter, who is a Manchester United fan.

Shed Seven's new album, A Matter of Time', is released on 12 January.

Sutton's prediction: 2-0

Aston Villa have slipped up in their past two games, against Sheffield United and Manchester United, picking up one point when I thought they would take all six.

Villa boss Unai Emery said after their defeat at Old Trafford that he is still happy to have 39 points so far, and was quite right to emphasise the fact they have over-achieved, but they are surely disappointed not to have pushed on in the past week.

Still, I think they will bounce back here. Burnley have picked up more points away (eight) than at home (three) but I don't see them keeping Ollie Watkins quiet.

Rick's prediction: Despite those last two results, Villa are having a great season. Going by the current form of both sides, I can only see this being a big home win... so watch me look silly when Burnley take the points! 4-0

Read the rest of their predictions here

There is plenty of live football to listen to across the BBC in the final weekend of 2023.

Tune into BBC Radio 5 Live and BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra for match commentary on four Premier League games in the run up to the new year.

Image source, Getty Images

Burnley manager Vincent Kompany says the Clarets have had a 2023 "filled with the type of experiences you want to have in your life" despite their difficult first half of the Premier League season.

Kompany guided the club to the Championship title in May, finishing with 101 points in his first season managing in English football.

"Sometimes I forget to reflect," he said in his news conference before Saturday's visit to Aston Villa.

"When I think about it, it's been a fantastic year. 2023 was filled with all the types of memories and experiences you want to have in your life. Lifting trophies, winning football matches, and also sharing moments with the fans.

"Not so long ago there was 60,000 Burnley fans out for the parade [for winning the Championship title]. Where we found 60,000 people to come out I don't know but they were there. That's been a part of our year.

"You're always aiming for more in 2024 and keeping improving and setting the bar high."

Burnley travel to Villa Park on Saturday lying 19th in the table with 11 points from 19 games, but the former Manchester City captain believes recent improved performances can lead to an upturn in results.

"I think the improvement has been there for everyone to see," he added.

"At times we've been unlucky with the calibre of players we've had to miss. We can't afford to miss certain players for too long but it's happened and it's life. The improvement has been there but turning it into results is ultimately what makes you a Premier League team and a Premier League player.

"That step we haven't made yet so it's a constant chase for that and to turn those performances into results."

Nat Hayward, BBC Sport

Burnley manager Vincent Kompany has been speaking to the media before Saturday's Premier League trip to Aston Villa.

Here are the key lines from his news conference:

• Kompany confirmed Hjalmar Ekdal is still not available but that Burnley "are getting players back and are in good shape".

• He reflected on a "tough" first half of the season: "I would have liked to see more points, I think at times the team deserved more points, but that's how it goes. At this moment it feels not enough but we're all very confident to press on for the next 19 games."

• Kompany said survival is "still in our hands", and added: "We have to be better than three teams and that's not the case at this time. We will do everything we can to do that. We have it in us but we're not there yet. It's my sole focus."

• On the next opponents Aston Villa: "I felt straight away they were a strong team. They have a very clear structure and idea of what they want to do. A lot of their young talents have matured into top Premier League players. It's all come together. They're going to keep progressing because that's the kind of manager he [Unai Emery] is."

• On Lyle Foster - who recently had a spell out with mental health issues - not being called up to South Africa's African Cup of Nations squad: "It's a very sensible decision in terms of supporting the advice of the experts. We didn't have Lyle available for a month or more because we wanted to put him first. Part of his rehabilitation is being part of a small group and playing football - something he loves."

• When asked about January transfer plans, Kompany said: "The biggest improvement we can make is our players making another step. What we're discussing at the moment is 'what if' scenarios. I don't think you go and buy Premier League-quality players with the type of money you have to spend but there are clever things we can do to improve the squad."

• Following their 3-1 win at Turf Moor in August, Aston Villa are looking to complete the league double over Burnley for the first time since 1925-26. They beat them 10-0 at Villa Park in that campaign.

• Having lost their first Premier League away game against Aston Villa in February 2010 (2-5), Burnley are unbeaten on their last four visits to Villa Park, with each of the last three ending level (W1).

• Aston Villa manager Unai Emery has won all four of his Premier League games against Burnley, with three of these matches finishing 3-1.

• Villa are winless in nine matches when playing their final league game of a calendar year at home (D4 L5), with their last win coming against Fulham in 2003 (3-0).

• Burnley have won their final league game in five of the last eight calendar years (D1 L2), beating Stoke City 1-0 in their last game of 2022.

• Aston Villa’s 15-game winning home run came to an end against Sheffield United last time out (1-1). Despite this, they’ve won 16 games and earned 50 points at Villa Park in 2023, their most at in the league at home in a calendar year since 1983 (18 wins, 57 points).

We asked you for your thoughts after Burnley hosted Liverpool at Turf Moor.

Here are some of the top comments:

Burnley fans

Andy: Much better performance and we deserved more. It is obvious that we need a right-back who can defend, likewise a central defender and strikers scoring. Vitinho and Dara O'Shea are not good enough to be defenders while Jay Rodriguez, for reasons only known to our naive manager, wasn't even used as a sub even though Lyle Foster, Zeki Amdouni and Michael Obafami are terrible.

Steven: Decent enough performance against a good side. Looked much better last half hour when we started pressing a bit more. We’re getting better so onwards we go. UTC.

William: How long do we have to go on with this dross? I’m fed up of hearing about potential and the three year plan. It’s comical defending at best. Please can someone watching this game give me any hope? Get rid of Kompany - he’s a waste of time.

Liverpool fans

Tricky: It was a decent, and reasonably resilient performance. It was disappointing that two perfectly good goals were disallowed. This is very poor, and the onfield and subsequent VAR interventions require further work. Great to see Jota back and firing immediately. We're going to need him and Nunez to deliver when we're without King Mo during the Africa Cup of Nations.

Ben: A dominant first half and a nicely taken goal. We started the second half in the same way; however, the second (unfair) disallowed goal hurt our rhythm. Our players reacted like we were being hard done by and Burnley gathered hope. In the end, it all worked out and the better team won but it became nervy for a while due to those decisions. Trent Alexander Arnold should play where Wataru Endo is - fact.

Ken: Made it unnecessarily nervy due to overcomplicating play in the final third and two awful subjective decisions by the officials; one by Tierney and one by Hooper, both of whom have previous with Klopp. Thank God for Jota who, unlike his fellow forwards, was clinical with the one chance he got. He's better than Figo, don't you know!

Fraser: Game should have been put to bed in the first half. We wasted a lot of chances and our finishing just wasn't as clinical as it should have been. But hey, a win is a win and we got the three points in the end. On the plus side, glad to see Darwin Nunez finally end his goalscoring drought. But more importantly, it's great to have Jota back.

Image source, Getty Images

Former Premier League defender Stephen Kelly says Vincent Kompany and Burnley need to go back to basics because their style of play is not working.

The Clarets remain second from bottom, but have lost ground on 18th-placed Luton, who won on Boxing Day to move four points clear, with a game in hand.

"It’s hard for me to say I want him to change and go defensive," Kelly told BBC Radio 5 Live's Football Daily. "But there does come a point where you have to realise what you did in the season before is not going to work this season.

"It’s the Premier League and not the Championship and now players have gone through a rut of losing games consistently instead of winning games. That change from winning every week to losing almost every week is a huge thing to take on board.

"If you can go back to basics - and Kompany was a masterful defender so if he can get that right - get behind the ball and still play your football but just don’t be as naive about it and shipping goals, it will only benefit them."

ESPN senior writer Mark Ogden agrees, suggesting the Clarets would have benefitted from bringing in some older players to help their promising youngsters.

"There just looks to be a bit of naivety and inexperience at Burnley," said Ogden. "You look at Luton who came up with Burnley and they’ve added Andros Townsend and Ross Barkley to the squad this year. It is that little bit of top-level experience that Burnley are lacking.

"Luton have given themselves a real chance of staying up. I just don’t think it’s Kompany’s way or the club’s policy either to go out there and bring in a player in his late 20s or early 30s. They see the way for them is to sign young players who are going to give long-term value.

"You can have too much of a business head sometimes. The ultimate business plan is to stay in the Premier League and sometimes you have to sacrifice those principles a little bit to get players in with that streetwise experience.

"I just don’t think it’s their way and Kompany thinks if they don’t succeed his way, they will go down again and come back up. Barkley and Townsend at Burnley would have made a big difference."

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