Chelsea vs Burnley tips and predictions: European ambitions meet Premier League survival dreams
Chelsea welcome Burnley to Stamford Bridge this Saturday afternoon for a pivotal Premier League clash (1500 GMT).
After a six-season stay in the Premier League, Burnley played in the Championship during the 2022/23 season. However, they bounced straight back, winning the league easily to secure a place in the top flight for the 2023/24 campaign.
Founded in 1882, and nicknamed the Clarets, Burnley play their home matches at Turf Moor, a stadium which has a capacity of 21,944.
By the end of that year, Burnley had gone professional and they looked to bring in the finest Scottish talent. They refused to join the FA, as the organisation did not allow professional clubs to join. Burnley were one of the clubs which made up part of the breakaway BFA in 1884, which the FA nullified by accepting professional soccer in July 1885.
Burnley made their first FA Cup appearance in 1885/86, although they fielded their reserve side as a result of FA rules not allowing them to pick professionals at the time. They were beaten 11-0 by Darwen Old Wanderers. Ahead of the 1888/89 season, Burnley were one of the 12 founding members of the Football League.
Harry Windle took over as Burnley chairman in 1909 and saved the club, leading them to promotion and the FA Cup semi-final in 1912/13. In 1914, Bert Freeman scored the winning goal in a 1-0 FA Cup final victory over Liverpool as captain Tommy Boyle led Burnley to their first major trophy.
In 1959/60, Burnley won the First Division title once again with a squad which only cost £13,000. This was largely as a result of their impressive youth development programme.
In 1961/62, Burnley finished as runners-up to Ipswich Town in the league and lost the FA Cup final to Tottenham Hotspur.
The collapse of ITV Digital caused financial problems for Burnley and they narrowly avoided administration in 2002.
In 2013/14, Burnley were promoted back to the Premier League under Sean "Ginger Mourinho" Dyche, but were relegated the following season. Dyche remained in charge for the 2015/16 campaign and led the Clarets to the Championship title and an immediate return to the top flight.
Working with a small budget Dyche continued to keep Burnley clear of relegation in the following years, even finishing in seventh place in the 2017/18 season. This saw them qualify for the UEFA Europa League, but they were eliminated in the play-off round by Greek club Olympiacos.
After a 10-year spell with the Clarets, Burnley sacked Dyche with the club battling relegation in the 2021/22 season. Mike Jackson took temporary charge of the side, but was unable to stop the club being relegated back to the Championship on the final day of the season.
Former Manchester City talisman Vincent Kompany was appointed manager of Burnley on June 14, 2022. He guided the Clarets to 101 points - the first time a team had picked up over 100 points in the second tier since Leicester City in 2013/14. Burnley secured promotion to the Premier League with seven games to spare, had won the Championship title by the end of April and only lost three games all season.
Since being incorporated as a limited company in 1897, Burnley FC have been owned by local businessmen and supporters all the way through to December 2020. Then, Velocity Sports Partners (VSP) acquired an 84% stake in the club for £200million. This saw Pace replace Mike Garlick as club chairman.
Chelsea welcome Burnley to Stamford Bridge this Saturday afternoon for a pivotal Premier League clash (1500 GMT).
With the FA Cup quarter-finals taking centre stage this weekend, there is not a lot of Premier League action remaining.
The two most out-of-form teams in the Premier League go head-to-head this Saturday as Burnley host Brentford (1500 GMT).
Lucas Paqueta and Danny Ings, who scored his first league goal in over a year, rescued a point for West Ham as they came from two goals behind against strugglers Burnley.
West Ham are on the hunt for a third Premier League win on the bounce when struggling Burnley visit the London Stadium on Sunday afternoon (1400 GMT).
Former Premier League midfielder Robbie Savage looks ahead to Monday Night Football as Newcastle face Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in a key game in the race for the European places.
Burnley’s battle for Premier League survival continues this Sunday as Bournemouth travel to Turf Moor (13:00 GMT).