Following a draining one-nil defeat in Saturday’s must-win game at Goodison Park, Vincent Kompany’s Burnley welcome Brighton to Turf Moor with very little chance of keeping their place in the Premier League, no matter the result.

‘The Seagulls’ will not be an opposition that Burnley can feel all too hopeful in getting back on track against, still very much scrapping away at the other end of the table, looking to keep European nights at the Amex with a top-six finish.

Despite his sides’ small chance of Premier League salvation, The Belgian remained upbeat in his pre-match presser, simply stating that he wanted to see his team play to their best in the last six games.

  • On two-match touchline ban


This week, Vincent Kompany was given a two-game touchline ban after his comments in the aftermath of ‘The Clarets’ two-all draw with Chelsea and Lorenz Assignon’s dismissal; stating that the referring standards in the Premier League this season “hasn’t been good enough”.

He said: “I totally acknowledge that what I said in the moment did absolutely not reflect what I thought about the official in terms of questioning the integrity of someone.

"I think that's that's too harsh, and it is not what I meant, so fair enough, and the two are separate issues. I can have a complaint about the level of refereeing," he added.

His ban will mean losing touchline access at nearly half of their remaining Premier League fixtures, returning for Burnley’s trip to Old Trafford at the end of the month.



Needing six points from the final six Premier League matches, it would be hard to blame Kompany if he chose to accept a Championship-sized fate; but he does not seem ready to let up, despite the task it requires.

“I would not call it a miracle, but it needs wins; it needs points.

“I mean, we are not necessarily able to look forward to any game and say this game we pick and choose is the one every game is tough for us, but every game offers the opportunity," he stated.

“We don't also look at any game as a game where we can't win because of the type of games we have played.”

Four of Burnley’s remaining Premier League opponents currently sit within the top half, adding to the enormity of the challenge with Burnley picking up a pathetic three points against the current top ten, all season.

  • On Brighton

Kompany was full of praise for Saturday’s visitors to Turf Moor, admiring that they have forced teams into setting up differently. 

He said: “They are unique opposition in the sense that without necessarily being classed as one of the big six teams in this league, [they have] managed to establish themselves with all the habits of the top teams in terms of; they force opposition teams to adapt, and for a team like Brighton to be able to demand that from even the bigger teams, that's pretty exceptional, so that means that it doesn't matter whether the top six teams play against them.

"They have to adapt their game to be able to play against Brighton; it's a pretty special situation to be in.”