Good Wood has Burnley in race
SEAN DYCHE was well aware of the burden a Europa League campaign was going to place on his Burnley squad – but he was hoping for an easier first hurdle than Aberdeen presented.
The Scots showed their quality in the first-leg draw at Pittodrie and put up a terrific battle to force the Clarets into extra time last night.
Chris Wood’s early goal gave Burnley the early control but Derek McInnes’s side hit back before half-time with a superb overhead kick equaliser from Lewis Ferguson.
It sparked a terrific battleof-Britain clash which needed another 30 minutes to settle it after a Sam Vokes header late in normal time was touched on to the bar by Joe Lewis.
And Burnley’s struggle to build on their early lead will only serve to strengthen Dyche’s bid to bring striker Jay Rodriguez back to the club from West Brom and confirm the purchase of Sam Clucas from Swansea.
Vokes’ late equaliser in the first leg meant that, at the very least, the Dons needed to score to stay in the competition.
Scoring against Dyche’s well-organised team is not an easy task as even the top Premier League clubs found last season and Aberdeen soon found themselves needing two after Burnley took a sixthminute lead.
Aberdeen were the architects of their own downfall with Graeme Shinnie losing possession in midfield and the ball breaking for Ashley Westwood who sent Wood through.
Lewis came off his line to force Wood wide and the chance looked as if it had gone but the striker showed nimble footwork to spin round the other way to leave Lewis stranded, before lifting his shot over two defenders on the line and into the roof of the net. Aberdeen were not short of support with their fans snapping up all the 2,000 tickets available to ensure a cracking atmosphere for Turf Moor’s first European game for 51 years – the last occasion was in the old Inter-Cities Fairs Cup against Eintracht Frankfurt in 1967. It was against the run of play when the Dons drew level after 27 minutes with a stunning goal by summer signing Ferguson. Gary MackaySteven crossed from the left and Wood went from hero to zero for Burnley by misdirecting his headed clearance across the penalty area to invite Ferguson to launch himself into an acrobatic overhead kick to send the ball into the top corner. The Dons were a team transformed and only a finger-tip save by Anders Lindegaard prevented Shinnie from giving them a half-time lead. Dyche sent on Ashley Barnes for Wood at the break and, as they had in the first half, Burnley piled on the pressure.
A smart save by Lewis prevented Joey Gudmundsson from restoring Burnley’s lead but the Dons weathered the storm and James Tarkowski had to make a good interception to stop Niall McGinn’s dangerous cross before Shinnie lifted a shot just over the bar. Lewis saved well again from Barnes to keep the scores level but the Dons continued to give as good as they got, Lindegaard saving well from Shinnie’s low shot.
Burnley thought they had won it when Matt Lowton crossed from the right and Vokes sent a header towards the top corner only for Lewis to tip the ball on to the bar.
BURNLEY (4-4-2): Goal: ABERDEEN (5-4-1): Goal: Booked: