Burnley first top-flight English side to lose opening six games of a season
Clarets boss Vincent Company called yesterday’s match tough to take - as they have failed to so far turn Championship dominance into Premier League competitiveness
Last updated 21st Jul 2024
Burnley have become the first team in English top-flight history to lose their first six home matches of a season.
It's follows their 2-nil defeat yesterday, when the Clarets took on Crystal Palace at Turf Moor.
Despite inheriting this new record, boss Vincent Kompany insisted nothing had surprised him about the scale of the challenge Burnley have faced in turning Championship dominance into Premier League competitiveness this season.
In stark contrast to this season's record so far, which sees them just one place above the foot of the table, last season, the Clarets lost only once at Turf Moor as they stormed to the Championship title.
Kompany argued, and Palace boss Roy Hodgson agreed, that Burnley had played better than the result reflected, but that does nothing to alter a league table in which they are off the bottom on goal difference alone with just four points from 11 games.
Having recruited several younger players without Premier League experience - something Kompany said was enforced by budgets - the manager insisted his side is growing but he has the challenge of keeping confidence levels up going into what could be a tough winter at Turf Moor.
"I think the biggest thing is that for (the players) I don't think we've ever set an unrealistic target and that's really important," Kompany said.
"I had a conversation with Roy Hodgson after the game and he said himself this league keeps improving. We can compare as much as we want but I can tell you from four years ago, when I was in this league, it has moved on massively.
"We have to put everything into context and not let ourselves get knocked down by something which is supposed to be one of the hardest achievements to do, which is to establish yourself in this league.
"Obviously we're going to be stretched to our maximum in every phase so mistakes have to be minimal. You can be punished by any team and what's what Palace did...But it's the way to learn for us. Put your hand in the fire, burn yourself, and then you know you can't put your hand in the fire."
Hodgson praised his Palace players for their determination in the face of a Burnley side who dominated the ball and had 16 shots to the visitors' four, but while he was happy with the discipline of their play, the Palace boss fumed at needless yellow cards picked up by Marc Guehi and Jordan Ayew.
Both players were booked after the half-time whistle sounded as they continued to argue over a free-kick awarded to Burnley by referee Peter Bankes.
"I was angry about it but actually I didn't know about it, I didn't get the information until the team was about to go out for the second half," Hodgson said.
"I was angry with them. We know the referee is likely or certainly entitled to give yellow cards, we can't say we didn't know.
"We can't afford with the depth of our squad to run the risk of losing players for accumulation of yellow cards just because they want to make their point to the referee."
Eberechi Eze returned from five weeks out with a hamstring injury and laid on Mitchell's stoppage-time goal, but after the match, Hodgson revealed that Jesurun Rak-Sakyi is facing a spell out after missing a matchday squad for the first time this season.
The 21-year-old, named the club's player of the month for October, suffered a hamstring strain in training on Thursday.
"It's bad," Hodgson said. "We don't know 100 per cent. We're not talking a week or two, we're probably talking longer than that. It's a real blow.
"Just as you get Eberechi Eze and Michael Olise back almost into the fold, you lose another player who we think is very important for us in our attacking play. We regained two and lost one. I would have preferred to have all three."