Kompany’s taking the weight off
VINCENT KOMPANY has tried to ease the pressure on his Burnley players in today’s relegation shootout with Sheffield United by insisting they have nothing to lose.
Kompany admits the game at Bramall Lane is must win for both sides, but claims the Clarets were written off months ago.
“They’ve been must win for a while for us,” said the Burnley manager. “When you get down to the wire, we’re not the only team in the league with must-win games. It’s a must win for both teams of course.
“I don’t think we have anything to lose.We were written off about 15 games ago, but we’re still fighting and we’ve just got to show the same energy as in the last few games.
“Football is not always about being the best team. It’s about the ball falling inside or outside the posts.
“You’ve got to force your own luck and, for that, you’ve got to have a certain amount of belief.
“We know we should have no fear.”
Burnley have lost just one of their past six games and Kompany said: “We’ve shown progress.We should have a few more points.”
Opposite number Chris Wilder claims he is keeping cool in the intense heat of the relegation fight because of his experience.
He says Sheffield United want to take their survival battle to the last game against Tottenham.
“That’s got to be our aim to take it to the wire and that’s the feel, genuinely, around the group, the club and in the city as well,” said Wilder.
“The spirit comes off the back of managing over 1,000 games and I’ve seen when changing rooms are overconfident and down.
“We’re in a decent place in terms of the feeling of it all.”
FORMER Burnley winger Leighton James, who was capped 54 times by Wales, has died at the age of 71.