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Burnley Fan View: Three talking points from Man Utd loss
Burnley went down 1-0 at Turf Moor to Manchester United after Anthony Martial converted the only goal in the second half. The Clarets have now won one league game in eight and have lost three in succession.
Despite this, it was a very good performance from Burnley, creating chances and more than matching their expensive opponents for large periods of the game. When it mattered, though, the quality showed and we left with nothing to show for a quality performance.
Here are my three talking points of the game yesterday.
Jeff Hendrick is jaded
I’m a big fan of Hendrick and feel of late he has come in from unwarranted criticism from a large section of the Burnley support. I don’t believe he is being played in a comfortable position behind the striker and it is affecting his confidence. He also does a lot of off-the-ball running and chasing, which isn’t appreciated at times. He has been subbed off on 60 at 70 minutes for most of the season and yesterday you could visibly see how tired he was after an hour. I am not sure why Dyche didn’t make a substitution sooner.
AS IT HAPPENED: Burnley v Manchester United
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Hendrick is similar to Jack Cork in my opinion, but has more burst going forward, that doesn’t make him an appropriate player to sit in the hole.
Assuming we don’t make a move in the transfer market for this type of player, I think either of Scott Arfield or Johann Berg-Gudmunsson could fill that position well, which could free up a spot on either wing for new boy Nkoudou to start.
Hendrick would benefit from a spell on the sidelines and could replace Cork or Defour in the centre of midfield if required later in games.
2. Matt Lowton needs to start over Phil Bardsley
When Bardsley came into the team, I thought he was solid at slotting into the structure and defensive shape right from his first appearance. Once again, it was pleasing to see a player who should have been rusty and taken time to get up to speed, just play like he has done it all season.
Lately, though, we have missed Lowton’s aggression on the ball. What Bardsley may have over him in terms of defending, Lowton is streets ahead on the ball and creating chances. Gudmunsson just has no support from Bardsley when we go forward and it makes us very one-dimensional in attack.
If Lowton is fit, and given he has been on the bench in the last handful of games, then for me he needs to come in and replace Bardsley in the next game at Newcastle.
3. Ben Mee could have saved the dinosaurs from extinction
I am forever surprised by how good Ben Mee is at heading the ball. Mee is barely 5ft 11″ but his desire for the ball in aerial battles is genuinely the best I’ve seen from any Burnley player, perhaps any player.
Against United, he won every single header against Romelu Lukaku (you know, that £76m-rated striker who’s 6ft 3″) to the point where Lukaku just stopped jumping for them in the second half. Indeed, the lone goal came from a clear push by Lukaku on Mee, the only way he could best him all game.
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Mee should be playing for England, there’s no question about it in my mind. The thirst for ball-playing centre halves is understandable, but looking at Burnley’s central defensive pairing,, you can see the benefit of having a ball player and an organiser. As good as Tarks is, we miss Ben Mee more than him when injuries and suspensions hit.
If Mee was around when the meteor struck the Earth and wiped out the dinosaurs, he’d have headed the thing back into space, then probably pointed at a grazing Diplodocus to keep the defensive shape.
