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Burnley logo
Championship
Mar 15, 2014 at 3pm UK
 
Leeds logo

2-1

Pearce (38' og.), Arfield (67')
FT(HT: 1-1)
McCormack (27')

Preview: Burnley vs. Leeds United

Sports Mole previews Saturday's Championship clash between high-flying Burnley and troubled Leeds at Turf Moor.

Burnley will be looking to take another step towards automatic promotion from the Championship this Saturday when they host Leeds United at Turf Moor.

The Clarets are currently second in the table with a comfortable eight-point gap now separating them from third-placed Derby County.

Manager Sean Dyche could be looking up the table rather than down it as they now trail leaders Leicester City by just seven points, albeit having played a game more.

Burnley come into this encounter on the back of an 11-match unbeaten streak in all competitions, while they haven't tasted defeat in the league since Boxing Day, 13 games ago.

They have only lost three times all season, which is a tally only Premier League leaders Chelsea can match out of the 92 teams in the top four divisions of English football.

Their home form is just as impressive, having not been beaten in any of the 17 league games at Turf Moor so far this season.

However, Dyche will need to pick his side up after they saw three points snatched from their grasp deep into second-half stoppage time in a 3-3 draw against Birmingham City on Wednesday.

The hosts received more bad news in that game as Danny Ings, the league's second top scorer behind Leeds striker Ross McCormack, picked up a knock that could rule him out of Saturday's clash.

January signing Ashley Barnes could come in for the prolific attacker, while Michael Kightly is also expected to return to the starting lineup.

Leeds, meanwhile, are a club in turmoil both on and off the field as their protracted takeover talks continue to make frustrating headlines for the fans.

A brief upturn in form at the start of February has well and truly been quelled by a five-match winless streak that has seen them drop down to 15th in the table and out of playoff contention.

Tuesday's 4-2 home defeat to Reading made it two defeats on the trot with nine goals conceded in that time for Brian McDermott's side, and he won't be too optimistic about improving those figures at Turf Moor.

Leeds have only found the back of the net once in their last three away outings, while their 2-1 win over Yeovil Town at Huish Park last month is their only win on the road in their last eight attempts in all competitions.

McDermott has no new injury concerns ahead of this weekend's match, but he could opt to make a number of changes to his side anyway, bringing in the likes of Cameron Stewart and Stephen Warnock.

Recent form

Burnley: WDWWWD

Leeds: WLDDLL

Possible starting lineups

Burnley: Heaton; Trippier, Shackell, Duff, Mee; Jones, Marney; Arfield, Barnes, Kightly; Vokes

Leeds: Butland; Byram, Pearce, Lees, Warnock; Austin, Murphy; Stewart, Mowatt, McCormack; Wickham

Sports Mole says: 3-0


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Brian McDermott. manager of Leeds United looks on during the Sky Bet Championship match between Sheffield Wednesday and Leeds United at Hillsborough Stadium on January 11, 2014
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2Burnley85211441017
3Leeds UnitedLeeds9441157816
4Sheffield UnitedSheff Utd8530103716
5West Bromwich AlbionWest Brom8512126616
6Blackburn RoversBlackburn8431149515
7Middlesbrough842295414
8Watford84131213-113
9Hull City8332129312
10Norwich CityNorwich83321210212
11Oxford UnitedOxford Utd83231210211
12Swansea CitySwansea832386211
13Bristol City8242913-410
14Stoke CityStoke83051012-29
15Derby CountyDerby83051012-29
16Millwall8224121118
17Coventry CityCoventry8224911-28
18Plymouth ArgylePlymouth8224812-48
19Sheffield WednesdaySheff Weds8224914-58
20Luton TownLuton8224813-58
21Preston North EndPreston8224712-58
22Queens Park RangersQPR8143914-57
23Portsmouth8044819-114
24Cardiff CityCardiff8116317-144


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