Burnley boss Sean Dyche hopes the club’s fans can savour his side’s final three Premier League games of the campaign.
The Clarets clinched the point they needed from a hard-fought 2-2 draw at Chelsea on Monday night to virtually guarantee their top-flight status for another season.
Dyche’s side sit nine points clear of third-bottom Cardiff with a vastly-superior goal difference and could have a big say in the title race when Manchester City visit Turf Moor on Sunday.
“It’s not completely done but (we’re) a strong way towards it,” said Dyche, whose side also face Everton and Arsenal. “They’re an enjoyable three games from a fan point of view.
“I think most people at Christmas would have thought we needed snookers to get out of where we were.
“Now they can enjoy these games without those huge nail-biting moments, but they still want to win. We definitely do and that’s regardless of it being Man City.”
Burnley have completed an impressive turnaround after winning only two league games before the second week in December, while a fourth straight defeat last month left them two points above the bottom three.
“It’s very pleasing and a reward for a very strong second half of the season, which we want to continue of course,” said Dyche, whose side have won three and drawn one of their last four.
“The players deserve a lot of credit, 28 points out of 16 games, is a massive return when you’ve only got 12 out of 19 in the first half of the season.
“It’s a huge adjustment from myself, the staff and the team that we had to make, but the players deserve all the credit.”
Liverpool will bid to leapfrog City at the top of the table when they play Huddersfield at Anfield on Friday night, while Pep Guardiola’s side are chasing their 12th straight league win.
“These are a top side, without doubt,” Dyche said. “They’ve proved that, they show it and can handle games and situations.
“On the other hand, they’ve got the demand that is right in front of them and that is to go and win the title.
“We’ve got a different demand, which is to play well and see the season out in the proper fashion and that can be a weapon.”
Thousands of Liverpool fans have changed their profile picture on social media to an image of Burnley striker Ashley Barnes as they hope City slip up at Turf Moor, but the stunt appeared to be lost on Dyche.
“I’m not against social media at all. I just don’t use it,” the 47-year-old added.
“I’m sure at one point in my life I will because my lad’s 16 and my daughter’s 13 and a half and they say ‘come on dad, for goodness sake, get involved’.
“So I’m sure one day I’ll be on those feeds and all these social media things, but I don’t really have a clue about what’s going on on them.”
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