Burnley lead the Championship and have won nine of their last ten. A surprise to many, but yet again it’s the club with the sound strategy and plan excelling in an otherwise money-driven modern game.

Overview

Football, it seems, is getting more complicated.

Newcastle manager Alan Pardew, charged with dragging results from an eclectic squad of weirdos at one of the country’s most schizophrenic clubs while Joe Kinnear breathes heavily down his neck, recently said that his chairman Mike Ashley gets “confused and upset” by the sport. Ashley may come across as a lager swilling lout, and is prone to the odd crazy decision or three, but he’s a hugely successful businessman in other fields.

At the end of last season we were told that Wayne Rooney was “angry and confused” by his situation at Manchester United. You could, of course, be unkind and say that Wayne Rooney could probably be confused by times tables, or a shiny piece of paper, or somebody pretending to throw a tennis ball for him to chase and then hiding it behind their back, but really his life should be pretty simple — score goals, which seems to come naturally, and take home more money than he can ever possibly spend.

And then this week we had Ian Holloway walking away from Crystal Palace citing exhaustion and regret over a summer in which he signed 14 players — two of whom subsequently didn’t make his 25 man squad — and effectively destroyed the team spirit that got the Eagles into the Premier League in the first place back in May. When even a straightforward, honest character like Holloway is tying himself in knots, you have to wonder whether the modern game is just too much for the human brain to cope with these days.

But then you look at Burnley, and remember that this can be a beautiful, simple sport at times.

On the one hand the rise of the Clarets to the top of the Championship 11 games into this season is a real surprise. Relegated from the Premier League in 2010 they’re at the end of their parachute payments and effectively wasted the majority of time that the money was pouring in by appointing Eddie Howe as manager and finding out that, just as during his playing days, Eddie Howe is brilliant when he’s in Bournemouth and not much cop, or particularly happy, when he’s not. Sean Dyche, part time television pundit since leaving Watford, replaced him on the last day of October a year ago and didn’t exactly tear up any trees for the rest of the season — 11 wins, 11 draws, 12 defeats, just four victories from the last 16 fixtures. Charlie Austin, scorer of 25 of their 62 league goals in 2012/13, was sold on the eve of the season with no obvious replacement of similar quality coming in.

You could probably have made a reasonable pre-season case for tipping Burnley to be relegated this year.

And yet even in a division where the likes of QPR and Reading are packing huge parachute payments, enabling them to bring in players like Royston Drenthe and Niko Kranjcar whose wages would surely be far beyond what Burnley can manage, there they sit at the top of the pile. There’s a certain sniffy arrogance to this fact in some quarters at the moment: it’s early in the season, pace setters often fade later in the campaign, perhaps they’re just on a good run, can the squad cope with injuries through a hectic winter and so on. For now though they’re definitely there on merit.

Austin wasn’t the only quality player to depart Turf Moor in recent times — Chris Eagles, Steven Fletcher, Jay Rodriguez, Jack Cork and others have all gone the same way - but Burnley have developed a happy knack of buying low and selling high. They target young players, schooled in Premier League academies, like Keiran Trippier and Ben Mee from Manchester City, former Manchester United keeper Tom Heaton and Junior Stanislas from West Ham. Players know good performances for Burnley can lead to big things personally, but it also breeds a healthy attitude of nobody being too big for the club because the Clarets have shown they can replace the almost irreplaceable and turn a profit as well.

They target players with points to prove — Sam Vokes and Michael Kightly had both had a rotten time with Wolves before arriving and Scott Arfield who was in and out of the Huddersfield Town side last season. They get them fit, they get them organised, they motivate them, they play a decent, enjoyable brand of football and they’re reaping the rewards.

Dyche, who belied a gruff exterior to speak consistent, articulate sense on Sky — merciful relief from the bland platitudes of Peter Beagrie and endless stream of rhetorical questions from Don Goodman — was harshly dismissed as Watford manager after performing well in trying circumstances. Vicarage Road is turning out to be a good proving ground for managers, with Brendan Rodgers, Malky Mackay and now Dyche all excelling after departing.

And yes the squad is small and yes the early pace setter often falls away and yes this may all peter out into another season of midtable mediocrity. But it might not, and even if it does then the way Burnley are going about things means they’ll be well placed to try again in subsequent seasons, as opposed to those who throw money around gambling on a short term reward and then face bust and years of pain if they fall short on the pitch.

A club doing things the right way. Not rocket science this stuff.

Interview

We went back on the message board trail this week for our opposition input, asking questions of the regulars on the Burnley Mad site. We got a shed load of answers, so thanks to everybody who took part. You can read the full thread here or a selection of the replies below…

What do you put the strong start to the season down to? Can it be maintained?

“Fitness and a change in mentality. We’re going out to win games rather than going out to not get beat. The high fitness levels of the squad mean we can effect that mentality for 90 minutes. It can be maintained with a lot of luck on the injury/suspension front.”

“Fitness, team spirit and a manager who appears to know how to get players to gel. I, personally, can't see these factors carrying us through a whole season and don't expect us to win automatic promotion. Equally, from where we are, it would be disappointing not to make the play-offs.”

“Fittest team I've seen in years, for any club. Strong partnerships all over the park.”

“Strong start to the season is down to Sean Dyche getting hold of the first 11 in his right hand, the subs in his left hand, gently squeezing them and telling them that they will get Burnley into the premier league at the end of this season.”

How was the appointment of Sean Dyche viewed by Burnley fans at the time? Presumably he's exceeded all expectations so far?

“His early determination to sort out the defence after the more gung-ho Howe period came as a bit of a culture shock, and some of the displays in the second half of the season alienated a lot of fans. Fair to say, therefore, he has blown expectations away so far this season, and being top of the league tends to improve a manager's popularity.”

“I was quite happy with the appointment, and he sorted the defence out from game 1. The down side was an awful set of performances at home in Feb/Mar. As has been stated though he had to work with what he'd inherited.”

“Dyche came across very well when he was appointed and I think most people, perhaps apart from those who wanted a ‘name’, thought he was a decent choice. There was some concern about the style of football he would bring and those were borne out in the second half of last season. A lot of fans wouldn’t have been disappointed to see him go at the end of the season. Absolutely nobody expected such a turnaround this season, the difference is enormous.”

Is Charlie Austin still viewed favourably round Turf Moor, or is he likely to get a hostile welcome back? What did you make of his departure?

“No one could blame Charlie for wanting to get into the prem. The only disappointing thing was that he joined another Championship club, even if your 'potential' was better than ours. You stole him at the price you paid.”

“Austin went for money and made it plain he wasn’t interested in us, therefore I have no interest in him. He went for cash and it left a sour taste to be honest, that said we have used the cash wisely."

“Yes he is, I don't think there's much ill-will towards him, we're realistic enough to know that we can't compete with the likes of QPR on wages and, as a consequence, when players are weighing up where they're most likely to fulfil their career ambitions.”

Danny Ings seems to have filled his boots pretty seamlessly, are they similar players? What can we expect from him?

“Ings is a better footballer in my opinion, you can expect a player who never gives up, has great vision and flair and an eye for goal.”

“It's Vokes rather than Ings who has filled Charlie's boots. Ings and Charlie never quite became a partnership last season, but Vokes' brawnier presence is the ideal counterpoint to Ings' busy, free-spirited style.”

“Ings is a better all-round footballer in my opinion. Plus he's tearing defences up at a higher level than Austin was at the same age. Think Ings has more potential to go further. Worth noting that Sam Vokes has also scored more in the league than Austin has this season. Not suggesting he's a better goal scorer, but for us at least he's a better fit for the way Dyche wants us to play than Austin was. (Important not to link Vokes' physicality to us being a long-ball team. Couldn't be further from it!).”

Where is the team strong, where is it weak? Who have been the stand out performers so far?

“The team as a whole is strong — that’s the secret of our success so far. Hard to single any players out but David Jones is the midfielder we’ve wanted for years.”

“We look strong everywhere due to the organisation and discipline of the side, no one seems to be asked to do things beyond their abilities. Duff isn't quick but midfield are stopping him being turned much, Mee's not great on the ball so he doesn't bomb on loads, Marney's similarly limited but so he's providing legs and energy and moving the ball on. Tripper, Ings and Heaton are our main assets, but Shackell, Jones, Kightly, Arfield and Vokes are putting in consistently strong performances.”

“This team is a real unit, but its marginally weaker down the left hand side than the right, because none of our left-back options are as complete a player as Kieron Trippier, whose defending has improved immensely this season without losing any of the attacking threat he poses from full back. There haven't really been outstanding individuals, but you'd probably single out Trippier, Jason Shackell at centre back, David Jones and the front 2 if you were really trying. If you were looking for a weakness to exploit, then every now and again we can be a bit vulnerable to opponents finding space to run at our centre backs, neither of whom are especially quick.”

“Strong everywhere at the moment, particularly in defence, where we've been solid for a while now, with Shackell leading by example. Stand out performers everywhere. IF I had to pick one, I'd go for David Jones, who runs the show from centre mid. Vokes deserves a mention, too - nobody expected this run of form from him. Unplayable at times.”

Is there a suggestion the board may invest in the team again in January to push on, or is it a case of having to stick with what you have?

“Depends what you mean by invest. We won’t buy anyone and it would take a lot for us to sell anyone if we’re still up there. The odd loan might appear depending on the aforementioned luck with injury/suspension.”

“The most ambition I could hope for in January would be refusing to sell the likes of Ings and Tripper. We could maybe see loans but we'll not be on your radar in terms of transfer activity.”

“Think we'll bring in a striker in Jan because one way or the other, chances are Ings will be a premier league player next season, either with us or with someone else, so I wouldn't mind us bringing in someone who can fit in should he get injured/sold in the summer. At the moment we only have two recognised centre forwards. Most important thing is NOT selling a single first teamer. Ings' value will be the same in Jan as it will be in June so the idea of selling him in January (or anyone else), regardless of the offer, will most certainly be a non-starter. Loans will most likely cover injuries.”

Links >>> Official Website >>> Clarets Mad site and forum >>> Travel Guide >>> Burnley Express local paper >>> Lancashire Telegraph local paper >>> The Longside, blog and forum

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Photo: Action Images

simmo added 16:21 - Oct 24 Cheers for another good report. There are some good players in the Clarets team that most of us that possess a basic understanding of the Championship know about, despite some in the Burnley forums thinking we know fck all unless they tell us! Trippier for example is as good a RB as any other in this league and I am pleased it is Simpson that could be missing rather than BAE. Reading through the posts on that Burnley site also makes me laugh, they are thinking that 'leaking secrets' like Ings & Vokes are working well together and Shackell marshalls the defence well will give 'Arry the blueprint to defeat them! Honestly... Seem a decent bunch of supporters though and the sound approach philosophy of the team working as one is exactly what I want to see succeeding in football, I wish QPR were more like that (as they always used to be) and certain recent signings are bringing us closer to it. Best of luck after Saturday to all the Burnley fans!

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TacticalR added 17:53 - Oct 24 Thanks for your oppo report and to the Burnley fans. Burnley must be doing something right as it's only a few years since they were last promoted to the Premiership. They have also coped magnificently with the manager's laryngitis. We've managed to beat nearly all the teams put in front of us without setting the world alight. Burnley sound like a strong side, and our most serious test so far. To the winner go the lozenges.

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QPRski added 18:00 - Oct 24 "A club doing things the right way. Not rocket science this stuff." Very true and very refreshing to see. I am not suprised that their supporters are enjoying themselves. I certainly would if I were one of them. This Saturday's match wil be very interesting, as well as the final outcome at thr end of the season. I sincerely wish them well (although not at our expense!)
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