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Cotterill has found winning formula, says ex-Claret Little

FLAIR WE GO: Glen Little and Robbie Blake had an almost telepathic understanding at Burnley

GLEN Little has told Burnley: 'You're better off without Robbie Blake and me!'

Former Clarets winger Little struck up an edge-of-the-seat and, at times, almost telepathic partnership with Blake during their final few years at Turf Moor.

The creative bond that so often enthralled fans was finally severed when Little bade an emotional farewell to Burnley last May to join Reading in a move that allowed him to return closer to his London roots.

When Blake then uprooted himself recently to join Birmingham City, it left Burnley boss Steve Cotterill plotting for the future without his leading goalscorer and captain.

Yet despite the double-whammy, Little firmly believes Cotterill's Clarets have finally overcome the 'ex-factor' to emerge as a much tougher proposition.

He said: "I left Burnley last summer but I still keep an eye on things and recently, while all the talk was rumbling on, people were asking me what they were going to do without Robbie.

"But I just knew the way they were playing that one goal would usually prove enough.

"They don't need Robbie, or me for that matter, because the way Steve has got them playing, they will always score goals whoever they play.

"Even when Robbie sat out the two games over Christmas, the result was two wins, so I think it was good business.

"Sometimes you have to make the most of the players you have. You can't keep going on conceding three or four goals, no matter who you have in the side.

"A lot of goals over the past few years were individual errors, so something had to be done and Steve has come in to replace Stan Ternent and done that brilliantly.

"It's a big turnaround and even though the 1-0 wins might not be as entertaining as some of the big scorelines of recent years, just look at the table!"

Little, 29, still admits to missing the little luxuries that helped make his seven years as an adopted Northerner such an enjoyable time.

An impressive detached house, with jaw-dropping views of the picturesque Ribble Valley framed through his living room window, was a far cry from his Wimbledon roots.

And idyllic family lunches in the sleepy Lancashire

countryside were a world away from the hustle and bustle of packed pubs that border the busy M4 corridor.

But since moving his young family back down south, Little believes it is on the field that Reading fans are reaping the real benefits.

He added: "I do miss little things about being up north, like the country life and the places I used to visit for lunches.

"The food certainly isn't as good down here, but that's the way it goes.

"I decided to come home and the kids are happier to see their grandparents more often now.

"It has been a change and that little spark that was perhaps missing has returned, so I'm enjoying it."

A New Year's Day reunion with former boss at Burnley Stan Ternent, now manager of struggling Gillingham, whetted the appetite ahead of Little's first return to Turf Moor.

And the mercurial wide-man, who scored 36 goals in 282 Clarets appearances, hopes for a happy 'homecoming' in more ways than one as Reading look to earn their first win - and in the absence of 12-goal top scorer Dave Kitson, score their first goal - in four games.

Little said: "We've been a bit disappointed with our last few results, but generally we still feel we have a great chance of making the play-offs and possibly promotion.

"I feel the standard in this league has got weaker over the past four years and with every passing season you feel you might not get a better chance.

"Both us and Burnley will be thinking that and it seems strange saying Burnley will be hard to beat because in the past two seasons, the one thing that stood out was that we had the worst defence in the division.

"It's hard to build anything when you are conceding three and four goals every week, but Steve Cotterill has addressed that and it's been a big turn around from the second worst defence in the league to the second best.

"It will be good to be back there and I would just like to think I get a decent enough reception tomorrow.

"The one thing with Burnley fans is they always give former players a good reception, but whatever I get I'm sure it will be nicer than the one I had at Preston the other week!"

I do miss little things about being up north