Swansea City vs Burnley. Premier League.
Swansea.com StadiumAttendance20,179.
Saturday 10 February 2018 14:26, UK
Burnley manager Sean Dyche says a 10-game winless run has done nothing to diminish the positivity at the club ahead of their trip to Swansea.
The Clarets' impressive season has stuttered of late, although they still sit seventh in the Premier League table and have come out the other side of a very tough run of fixtures.
That culminated last week when they held leaders Manchester City to a 1-1 draw at Turf Moor.
Dyche said: "One of the great things we have here is a great clarity and a great alignment throughout what we do. The chairman and the board know the challenge of the Premier League, I do, my staff, the players, they're very honest and open about the challenges, and our fans.
"Our fans have been amazing throughout not winning as many games lately. They're seeing beyond that. As well, there's life in a side that's giving everything and our side certainly gives everything."
Hosts Swansea have experienced a huge upturn in fortunes under Carlos Carvahal, with the club fresh from recording their biggest domestic victory since 1978 courtesy of the 8-1 win over Notts County in the FA Cup fourth-round replay.
They welcome the Clarets full of confidence and hoping to extend their unbeaten run in all competitions to nine games having moved out of the relegation zone.
"Burnley are very organised and very solid," Carvalhal said. "It's not a good period to play against them. I know the team and the manager very well from the Championship.
"It's a team that is very compact and know exactly what they're doing at every moment in the game. They're a dangerous side and they can frustrate any opponent in the Premier League."
New signings Andre Ayew and Andy King are in line to make their Swansea debuts at the Liberty Stadium.
Striker Ayew has recovered from a hamstring injury after returning to Swansea from West Ham, while loan midfielder King was unable to play against parent club Leicester last weekend.
Renato Sanches (hamstring) remains out, and Angel Rangel (groin) is the latest Swansea player to need surgery after Leroy Fer (Achilles) and Wilfried Bony (knee) suffered season-ending injuries.
Burnley have Stephen Ward back fit but will be without Phil Bardsley for their trip to Swansea.
Bardsley was forced off at half-time of last weekend's draw with City because of a hamstring problem so Matthew Lowton will make his first start following injury at right-back. Ward (knee) is likely to have to settle for a place on the bench as Charlie Taylor keeps his place at left-back.
James Tarkowski (groin), Tom Heaton (shoulder), Robbie Brady, Steven Defour, Dean Marney, Chris Wood and Jon Walters (all knee), all remain sidelined.
Burnley have found their position now and are finding their results. They had an unbelievable start and were punching above their weight. They had a good result against Manchester City, but they faced a lot of chances.
Swansea have got some major momentum, even in the cup with the second-string out, and there's a bit of a buzz about the place. Carlos Carvalhal's done a phenomenal job, but he needs to keep them up or it becomes a job similar to Marco Silva at Hull.
PAUL PREDICTS: 2-0 (17/2 with SkyBet)
Swansea are 7/5 to maintain their upturn in form with another victory as Sky Bet consider Burnley as 9/4 outsiders, while the draw is priced at 19/10. Carlos Carvalhal's impact has seen the Swans go from odds-on favourites to 11/8 to face relegation, while their visitors remain well odds-on for a top-half finish despite their winless run.
Tammy Abraham heads the first goalscorer betting at 9/2 following his midweek double, while Ashley Barnes and Sam Vokes are considered the visitors' main threats at 6/1 apiece.
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