Burnley 1 Newcastle United 0: Five things we learned

This was Sean Dyche’s 92nd win as Burnley manager and it certainly came from a template that we’ve all witnessed before.

The Clarets have had their moments of magic under Dyche, they’ve shown they’re capable of taking teams apart, but it’s the gritty, resilience of these one-goal wins that stick in the mind.

Burnley have won five Premier League home games in 2017 and all of them have been 1-0. It’s a Clarets speciality, stay resilient and the chance will come.

Of those 92 wins, 54 of them have been by a single goal. It’s something Burnley have made a habit of, they can stick in games, they can be dogged and determined and they can find a way to win it. It’s not a bad trait to have.

MIDFIELD MAGIC

It was apt that the Clarets’ winner owed so much to the work of Steven Defour and Jack Cork in the middle of the pitch.

The pair have dovetailed nicely since being partnered together in a deeper midfield role and they stood out against Newcastle United.

Defour’s passing was excellent and he showed some fine touches in midfield, while Cork won the man of the match award and caught the eye with one fine early run.

For the goal it was Defour’s energy and fight to win the ball that allowed Cork to gallop forward and fire a shot on goal.

This is a partnership that is beginning to blossom.

POPE’S PROGRESSION

This was a third clean sheet for Nick Pope - including the one he kept as a first-half replacement for Tom Heaton against Crystal Palace - and he is continuing to impress in the absence of the stand-in skipper.

Pope has barely put a foot wrong since coming in for Heaton and he made a couple of smart second half saves to keep Newcastle at bay on Monday night.

He earned praise from goalkeeper-turned-pundit David Preece on Twitter and he’s certainly catching the eye at the moment.

FOUR-FOUR-TWO

No, not Dyche’s favourite formation, but Burnley’s win-draw-loss record after 10 Premier League games this season.

The Clarets boss has gone for a 4-4-1-1 system this season but it’s perhaps fitting that the Clarets’ record should read 4-4-2 on the occasion of his fifth anniversary.

And more importantly it highlights what an incredible start to the campaign it has been. The win took Burnley up to seventh in the Premier League, and given the fixture list they have had to cope with, especially away from home, surely very few saw that coming at the start of the season.

PATIENCE IS A VIRTUE

Newcastle’s set-up at Turf Moor was another example of teams coming to frustrate this season.

Burnley have had to be patient at home this term. A year ago they were taking advantage of teams, scoring goals and looking a major threat.

Now it’s about ‘calmness’ as Dyche put it on Monday night. After a bright start had failed to produce a goal the Clarets stuck at their task and they were rewarded late on, just as they had been against West Ham.

It’s an approach they will have to continue to adapt at home this season.