Author: Barkha Roy
Burnley, led by former Manchester City captain Vincent Kompany, secured their place in the top flight for next season, moving 19 points clear of third-placed Luton.
After Luton failed to win at Millwall and were mathematically eliminated from the top two, all eyes were on Kompany’s side. Burnley needed to beat Michael Carrick’s Middlesbrough side to secure automatic promotion, which they did with goals from Ashley Barnes and Connor Roberts in a 2-1 win.
Throughout the season, Kompany’s team has been in the lead and was expected to finish in the top two. They lost just twice in the league season and earned their position at the top of the standings. Burnley have also scored the most goals (76) and conceded the fewest (30) of any team in the league this season, indicating their dominance.
Burnley’s impressive performance has allowed them to rack up a remarkable 19-game unbeaten run in the league. Their most recent league defeat came at the beginning of November against Sheffield United, another promotion contender. Since then, they’ve kept up the pace and picked up where they left off after the World Cup break.
One of the significant contributors to their promotion is 23-year-old striker Nathan Tella, who is currently on loan from Southampton and has scored 17 goals and provided three assists. Given their club’s relegation from the top flight in the previous season, Burnley fans will be thrilled with the progress of the 2022-23 season.
The appointment of former Manchester City defender Vincent Kompany as the team’s manager, following the departure of long-time coach Sean Dyche, has brought several changes to Burnley. Although there were initial doubts, the Belgian coach proved to be an excellent choice at Turf Moor and helped redefine Burnley’s footballing identity.
The addition of eight players from the Belgian First Division was a significant factor in this. Kompany signed players such as Manuel Benson, Josh Cullen and Anass Zaroury, who proved to be excellent recruits for the future Premier League side.
When Burnley were relegated from the Premier League after a disappointing season, they had to pay back a significant part of their 65 million pound loan from American financial company MSD Holdings. The club’s financial challenges were compounded by the sales of several players, including Nathan Collins to Wolves, Nick Pope to Newcastle and Dwight McNeill to Everton, as well as the departure of defenders Ben Mee and James Tarkowski on free transfers to Brentford and Everton respectively.
Despite these setbacks, Kompany managed to enter the transfer market and keep a core group of experienced players who could collaborate effectively. That strategy paid off, as Burnley are now on course to become the first team since the Newcastle United side of 2009-10 to remain unbeaten at home during the league season on their way to winning the Second Division championship.
Kompany’s managerial career reached a significant milestone after just 10 months in charge at Turf Moor. He will encourage his team to stay focused on winning the championship, because that is the task at hand. In the long term, he will work hard to keep Nathan Tella, who has been a star of the team this season and is on loan from Southampton, and will also add several other players to his squad.
The next match is a highly anticipated clash against second-placed Sheffield United on Monday night. A win for Burnley would increase their lead over second place to 14 points and virtually guarantee them the league title.