MICHAEL Duff is relishing every minute of his second chance in the Premier League, having missed most of the season through injury when Burnley last graced the top division.

The 36-year-old has been an integral part of an ever-present back four so far this season, starting every game alongside captain Jason Shackell at the heart of the defence.

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It is a far cry from the Clarets last top flight adventure five years ago, when Duff didn’t make his first appearance until December 20, and played only 11 Premier League games all season.

“I was injured at this point last time in the Premier League,” said Duff. “It’s great to be here.”

“I’m the same as any supporter and most players are like any supporter – we all want to be here.

“We’re testing ourselves against the best and we know that we’ve got to be at our best every game.

“With the squad now – with the quality and numbers that we’ve added – there won’t be many lives for people if they’re not at it and they’re not playing well.”

For a player who started his career with Cheltenham in the Southern Premier League, and made over 100 non-league appearances before his first taste of the Football League, the first few weeks of the season have been a dream for Duff, who has come up against opposition such as Diego Costa, signed by Chelsea for £32million, and Manchester United’s £59.7million man Angel Di Maria.

“That’s why we’re here. You’ve got to enjoy the likes of Di Maria making his debut last week and Diego Costa,” said the former Northern Ireland international.

“My little one likes it because he gets to see them up close. It’s great. From a little boy you want to compete against the best and I’m no different to anybody else.”

Saturday’s goalless draw at Selhurst Park was Duff’s 301st league appearance for Burnley, one more than he made in eight seasons playing for Cheltenham Town.

He is the longest-serving player at Turf Moor and is well aware of the challenges facing the Clarets this season “We know that we have to be at our maximum every game in this league,” he said.

“We are the minnows of minnows in this league. We’re tiny fish in a huge pond.

“We weren’t fancied last year, though, so we’ll just try to carry on this year. We back ourselves to do alright.”

If Burnley are to survive in the top flight this season, then the defence will lay the foundations for that success.

They have only conceded once in their last three league games, picking up two points along the way, and making themselves hard to beat is a trait they are keen to continue for the rest of the season.

“We felt we were unlucky against Swansea – I thought we deserved at least a point there,” said Duff.

“We’ve just carried on from last year where we were hard to beat. We’ve got good organisation, players that work hard for each other and we can stay in games.

“There’ll be times where we won’t see the ball for long spells in this league because of the players and the teams that are in it. It’s important that we don’t cave.

“There’ll be times this year where you might get your bum slapped, but that can happen to every team in this league.

“Generally we stick together and we’re hard to beat which gives you that platform to nick a win which we were unfortunate not to do on Saturday.”