BURNLEY boss Sean Dyche revealed Robbie Brady will feature for the club's Under-23 side this afternoon.

The Irishman is working his way back to full fitness after a knee injury and will get his latest run-out when the young Clarets take on Sheffield United at Curzon Ashton's Tameside Stadium (2.15pm).

And Dyche said if the winger comes through unscathed then he will be pushing for a return to first team action, a path that Steven Defour has trodden having made his first Premier League start since January in the weekend defeat to Manchester City.

The Clarets chief said: "Robbie is close now, but not quite there yet. He’ll probably play on Monday, and if he gets through that 90, great news, that means he’s very close then.

“But Steven, I spoke to him about playing, I said, look, it’s a tough game, but we want you in there and want you to get match fit, and that will do him the world of good.

“Yet again, we took him off as a precaution, there was a lot of work involved with them keeping the ball, but he’ll come back and enjoy his or with us again, as will Robbie, so they’re getting closer now.

“And it’s appropriate timing, they’ve been very unfortunate, but we do need those reinforcements."

Meanwhile, the Burnley boss said Aaron Lennon was replaced in the second half of the Etihad defeat with a thigh injury picked up in the first minute challenge from Vincent Kompany which Dyche felt warranted a red card.

He saaid: "We had to take Azza off, he was struggling at the end playing with the stitches in his thigh, which he did great with.

“We had to be precautionary."