Burnley caretaker manager Mike Jackson said he felt “a little embarrassed” at being thrust into the spotlight as the Clarets’ revival continued with a 2-1 comeback win at Watford.
Saturday’s triumph at Vicarage Road lifted the north-west club five points clear of the Premier League’s bottom three and all but relegated the Hornets, who sit 12 points from safety with four games to go.
An early own-goal from James Tarkowski had provided a glimmer of hope for the hosts but Burnley equalised through Jack Cork in the 83rd minute and Josh Brownhill’s strike completed the turnaround three minutes later.
The result meant the Clarets have now picked up 10 points from four games since sacking Sean Dyche on April 15, leading to much praise for interim boss Jackson, but he insisted he was not in the job for the plaudits.
“I’m not one for the limelight,” he said. “I try to keep low key and just do what I’m doing – stick with the group, keep them honest. I don’t look at it like that (getting plaudits).”
“I know that’s what’s happening but sometimes it probably makes me feel a little embarrassed for myself.”
Jackson explained that Tarkowski, who captained the side in the absence of Ben Mee, had only joined up with the squad on the morning of the match for family reasons.
“We were down in the hotel (on Friday night). He got picked up, got driven straight down, put on the bus and straight in the game,” Jackson said.
“That’s his character – what he’s done to get himself here and ready to play. That typifies what he is, what sort of leader he is. For the lads to see him, they knew what had happened, credit to him.”
Watford assistant boss Ray Lewington, 65, managed to find positives despite the defeat and his club’s perilous position, insisting he and manager Roy Hodgson, 74, were lucky to be doing what they loved.
“We enjoy it – coaching is what we love doing, both of us,” he said. “We love getting out there. You get so many disappointments, unless you are (Jurgen) Klopp or Pep (Guardiola), and when you are a coach you get used to losing and you get hardened to it.
“It’s still not easy to take, but we’ll be out there on Monday, doing sessions that we think will help in the next game.
“But we are lucky to be coaching at our age and we’re grateful to Watford for giving us the opportunity to do it.”
