STAR FOOTBALL PREVIEW Fri: Burnley v West Brom

Vincent Kompany’s Burnley are flying in the Championship, but West Brom are on the up as well under Carlos Corberan and will be hoping to bring the Clarets back down to Earth when the two sides meet in an intriguing clash at Turf Moor on Friday night.

It was a huge summer of change at Turf Moor following their relegation from the Premier League with long-term boss Sean Dyche departing after 10 years at the helm and Manchester City legend Vincent Kompany coming in as their new manager with fresh ideas and a host of new signings.

And it has all clicked into gear pretty quickly with Burnley flying high at the top of the league with 59 points from 27 matches, 16 points clear of Watford in third-place and looking all-but certain to make an immediate return to the top-flight.

They have been dealt a blow in recent days with Taylor Harwood-Bellis, a centre-back on loan from Manchester City, suffering a foot injury that will see him sidelined for a number of weeks.

However, Kompany has managed to assemble a squad with great depth and should be able to cover this loss with defenders Charlie Taylor and Luke McNally waiting in the wings. Failing that, he can always dip into the transfer market with the January window open and Burnley likely to be an attractive proposition for potential targets with the way they are playing.

Burnley v West Bromwich Albion
Championship
20:00 Sky Sports Main Event / Sky Sports Football / Sky Sports Ultra HDR

HEAD-TO-HEAD RECORD
(Maximum 10 matches)
SEP 2022 CHAMPIONSHIP West Brom 1-1 Burnley
FEB 2021 PREMIER LEAGUE Burnley 0-0 West Brom
OCT 2020 PREMIER LEAGUE West Brom 0-0 Burnley
MAR 2018 PREMIER LEAGUE West Brom 1-2 Burnley
AUG 2017 PREMIER LEAGUE Burnley 0-1 West Brom
MAY 2017 PREMIER LEAGUE Burnley 2-2 West Brom
NOV 2016 PREMIER LEAGUE West Brom 4-0 Burnley
FEB 2015 PREMIER LEAGUE Burnley 2-2 West Brom
SEP 2014 PREMIER LEAGUE West Brom 4-0 Burnley
FEB 2009 FA CUP Burnley 3-1 West Brom

West Bromwich Albion had a dreadful start to the season under Steve Bruce and, when he was sacked as manager in October, the Baggies looked like they might be embroiled in a relegation battle with the club sitting in 22nd-position in the table.

However, under Corberan – who guided Huddersfield Town to the Championship play-off final last season – West Brom have charged up the league table, winning 10 of their last 13 matches in all competitions. They are now currently occupying the final play-off spot with their Spanish coach aiming to go one better with the Baggies than he managed with the Terriers last season.

West Brom showed that have got heart and fight as well as skill and quality in their last league outing as Corberan’s men fought back from 2-0 down at Luton Town to come back and win 3-2 thanks to goals from Daryl Dike, Jayson Molumby and Conor Townsend.

This will be a real challenge, though, and a good test of how strong their promotion credentials are with only two teams having managed to beat Burnley so far this season (Watford & Sheffield United).

This will be a really tasty, intriguing clash – what the Championship was made for – and, on the night, I don’t see anything separating the two sides. At 23/10 with starsports.bet, a draw is going to be my bet for this one.

JOE CITRONE

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