BURNLEY Under-23s can edge closer to the Premier League Cup knockout stages today as they face Newcastle United.

The Clarets have won their first two games in the group, including a remarkable 4-3 success on Tyneside which Michael Duff believes will give his young charges belief they can compete at this level.

Burnley face Newcastle United at Stockport County's Edgeley Park today (2pm) before travelling to south Wales to face Swansea on Monday (1pm) in a double header that will go a long way to deciding their Premier League Cup fate.

Both Newcastle and the Swans are Category 1 sides and will present a stiff tough for Duff's side, but the former Clarets defender believes they can only have taken belief from the win at Newcastle in September.

"They're a good team, they're like most Category 1 teams in that they're all comfortable on the ball, they will look to keep possession and play as much as football as they can so it's up to us to try and influence the game in the way we want to by looking to press and play quickly and use the strengths we have in our team," Duff said of the threat posed by the Magpies.

"It was a funny one because they (Burnley) spent an hour looking at them seeing how good they were. Then we went 2-0 down and it almost released the shackles from the lads, they thought 'what else have we got to lose? We're 2-0 down playing this way'.

"Then they got on the foot and played a bit quicker and with a bit more freedom and ended up scoring four goals in the last 15 minutes or 20 minutes.

"It had to give them the belief that they can compete at the level."

Duff is unsure exactly what sort of his side he will able to field today, with the transfer window meaning some Burnley youngsters are heading out on loan.

He has had striker Dan Agyei available recently following his return from Walsall, but the 20-year-old could head back out on loan at some point this month.

"When we rock up Thursday morning we'll know what we're doing and we'll go for there," Duff said.

"There can't be too much planning, but there's a way we want the team to play, so no matter who plays in what position we want the team to play in a certain way so that's what we'll be looking for."

Duff's side have only played one completed game since the end of November, a recent defeat at Leeds in the Professional Development League.

"There's not a lot you can do about it. We had the Hull game abandoned because of the weather, then the Christmas period and then weather again," he said.

"I don't think we're any different to a lot of other teams in the country, it's just the time of year when it happens.

"We're training every day as normal so you try and get as much in-house football as you can to tick the lads over but until we turn up on Thursday we won't know how it's affected them, positively or negatively."