Lancashire | Burnley face Leeds United with three points on the agenda

Burnley v Leeds United preview

Two of the newly-promoted sides facing off against each other with Leeds United travelling to Lancashire to face Burnley.

Author | Andrew Montgomery 

Stadium | Turf Moor

Pre match at Burnley v Nottingham Forest

Burnley have proved a stubborn, if often unconvincing, presence in the Premier League this season. Despite their resilience, the Clarets have managed only one win from their opening seven matches of the 2025-26 campaign.

Last time out for the Clarets

It was a narrow 2-1 defeat against Aston Villa. Clarets fans could have been forgiven for feeling a sense of deja vu as they flocked out of Villa Park. Parker's team, who have competed well during games against Tottenham, Manchester United, Liverpool and Manchester City this season, found themselves in some excellent attacking positions in the first half in particular.

Hartman was denied by Martinez in a one v one situation, but was deemed to be offside from Walker's pass, while Cullen was thwarted by an excellent stop from the Villa keeper.  However, they just didn’t have the quality to pick up at least a point.

The Leeds United perspective

After returning to the top flight, there were early concerns that Daniel Farke might set up his Leeds United side to be overly attacking and open. Instead, he appears to have taken a more cautious approach.

The Whites have picked up eight points from their first seven matches of the season. Before the international break, they produced another promising display but were edged out 2-1 by Tottenham Hotspur at Elland Road.

Recent history between the two sides

Last season, both sides were in a titanic tussle for the Championship title that lasted until the last seconds of the campaign. When they faced off at Turf Moor back in January, they battled out a 0-0 draw that demonstrated how close they were in ability. 

Key stats and facts ahead of this match

Home advantage has been crucial in recent meetings between newly promoted Premier League sides, with the hosts winning each of the last three fixtures. That includes Burnley’s 2-0 victory over Sunderland earlier this season.

Burnley have been strong at Turf Moor against Leeds United, losing only once in their last six home league encounters, with three wins and two draws.

Defensively, though, the Clarets have struggled. They have conceded 15 goals in their first seven Premier League matches, the second-highest total in the division behind West Ham. That is just one fewer than they let in over the course of their 46-game Championship campaign last season. In Football League history, only one team has previously reached their previous season’s total within their first eight matches: Liverpool in 1894-95, who did so after seven games.

Scott Parker’s side have also seen little of the ball, averaging just 35.3% possession so far. That is the third-lowest figure recorded in a Premier League season since Opta began collecting data in 2003-04, ahead of only Cardiff City in 2018-19 (33.9%) and Sheffield United in 2023-24 (35.0%).