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Burnley ended a run of three home games in eight days with a 1-0 defeat against Liverpool. It’s left us in a very difficult situation in the Premier League but there was much to enthuse about after one of our best performances of the season.

At the end of the day, it’s all about putting the ball in the net. Liverpool did it once but we couldn’t find one goal despite creating a number of chances, particularly in the first half.

Eight days earlier, the performance in the 0-0 draw was nowhere near good enough. Three days later, a second half performance to earn a draw gave everyone a big lift and then against Liverpool, the second best team in the country, we stepped it up and gave Klopp’s lot a difficult afternoon and for all his usual after match stuff, he knew how tough we’d made it for his team.

There was no comparison between the three performances. The one consistent has been the weather. It seems for the last week, all I’ve done is go to football and then go home to dry out and it was no better yesterday on another extremely windy day as the rain poured. I know this is Burnley and we are accustomed to shocking weather but I can’t recall it ever being as bad as this for three successive fixtures.

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There was one surprise when the team was announced. Sean Dyche brought back Aaron Lennon for Dwight McNeil. For those who are obsessed with us having an old team, this change will have been extra ammunition. It’s not often Dwight is left out. He was used a couple of times last season as a substitute but that was when he was coming back from injury and the only other occasion he’s been on the bench since claiming a first team place three years ago was in the final away game of that season at Everton.

I think it is fair to say that Liverpool fielded a strong team. I suppose, given the players at their disposal, it’s never anything but. Yesterday, all their big guns were there and I think we all sensed that this might be a difficult afternoon.

It was a tight start to the game with just a one half chance going Liverpool’s way but then we created a number of chances that might have seen us break the deadlock. It all started with a Josh Brownhill shot that Alisson saved at the expense of a corner. Brownhill might not have scored his first Premier League goal but he very definitely turned in his best Premier League performance in this game. There were some very good individual performances but Brownhill stood out in midfield.

Nick Pope made one save but then we did have four very presentable chances. Two fell the way of Wout Weghorst with both Jay Rodriguez and Maxwel Cornet having opportunities. Weghorst’s were both off target, although Trent Alexander-Arnold came close to finding his own goal with the first of them. Alisson denied both Jay and Cornet.

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Goals win matches and we hadn’t been able to take them for which we paid the price just a few minutes before the break when Liverpool won a corner on the left. Fabinho got a shot in from the corner, it was saved by Pope but he could do nothing with Fabinho’s second effort that evaded Cornet on the post and found its way into the net.

A few minutes later, as Martin Atkinson blew his half time whistle, the Burnley players received a superb ovation from the home stands. We really did not deserve to be behind.

The second half was quieter and Liverpool probably had a couple of good chances, one of which was close to a Ben Mee own goal, while we were never able to create the sort of chances we had in the first half. But we were always in the game. Liverpool couldn’t relax and it always looked as though we might have a goal in us.

Dyche brought on McNeil for Jay Rod and then we were forced into a second change when Weghorst couldn’t run off an injury. That one looked concerning, the injury looking to have been suffered when he landed. The striker played well again and I think he just needs that first goal to help settle him.

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The two substitutes all but combined for an equaliser with Ashley Barnes, who had replaced Weghorst, almost getting on the end of a low McNeil cross, but it was Diogo Jota who came closest right at the end when he shot wide having been set up by Mo Salah.

Burnley 0 Liverpool 1 it will read in the record books and that’s important because we are so badly in need of points. Having said that, the Burnley fans were leaving with smiles of faces having seen arguably the best performance of the season.

It doesn’t help does it when former players are causing us damage? The bad news yesterday was another Kieran Trippier goal for Newcastle. He’ll be missing their next few games having broken a bone in his foot but his current performances have gone some way to leaving us with a mountain to climb.

If we can turn in more performances like this one, then we really do have a chance although it is going to be difficult now.

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The Watford draw might well have been horrible but this result was nothing short of cruel.

And one final word about the weather. Members of Boundary Clarets and North Manchester Clarets stood out in that pouring rain yesterday on the ‘Clarets for Foodbanks’ collection. We owe them and all those who donated our thanks.

The teams were;

Burnley: Nick Pope, Connor Roberts, James Tarkowski, Ben Mee, Erik Pieters, Aaron Lennon, Josh Brownhill, Ashley Westwood, Maxwel Cornet, Wout Weghorst (Ashley Barnes 75), Jay Rodriguez (Dwight McNeil 62). Subs not used: Wayne Hennessey, Matt Lowton, Phil Bardsley, Nathan Collins, Kevin Long, Dale Stephens, Jack Cork.

Liverpool: Alisson, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Joel Matip, Virgil van Dijk, Andrew Robertson, Jordan Henderson (Thiago Alcántara 59), Fabinho, Naby Keïta (James Milner 90+2), Mo Salah, Roberto Firmino, Sadio Mané (Diogo Jota 67). Subs not used: Caoimhín Kelleher, Ibrahima Konaté, Kostas Tsimikas, Alex-Oxlade Chamberlain, Luis Díaz, Harvey Elliott.
Yellow Card: Jordan Henderson.

Referee: Martin Atkinson (Leeds).

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