Burnley started the season as massive underdogs in the battle for survival, having basically retained the squad that improbably won promotion from the Championship. Sean Dyche preferred to give the players who earned the chance to play in the top-flight the opportunity to prove that they were not out of their depth. Thus, the only signing of the summer who would become a regular was George Boyd and he only arrived at the end of August. It was a predictably testing start of the season as Chelsea gave the Clarets a lessons in a commanding 3:1 away win on the opening weekend. But Burnley showed guts to hold Manchester United to a draw at the end of the opening month of the season and went on a pretty encouraging run of three clean sheets in a row. But they were finding goals very hard to come by, with little creativity coming from midfield and the strikers left isolated more often than not. That meant that the Lancashire side would find themselves perched into the bottom of the table. It was already looking like a steep task for the newcomers in their battle for survival but they remained a disciplined and united outfit that was giving their best in games. They finally secured a first win of the season at the 11th attempt, edging Hull for a 1:0 home win. They backed that up with a surprise 2:1 victory at Stoke as well and suddenly the prospects of survival looked much rosier. The team looked much more competitive in the new few weeks and earned a few more excellent results, beating a strong Southampton side and then stunning Manchester City for a 2:2 away draw after being two goals down. There was momentum about the team and with Danny Ings and Ashley Barnes proving an industrious and lively pair up front, the team carried a real sting in attack too. But having looked like a team heading for the safety places on current form, Burnley seemed to fade from late January onwards. A disappointing collapse at home to Crystal Palace in a 3:2 home defeat, from two goals up, seemed to have demoralised them badly and they went on a long run of just a single win in 14 games. Goals dried up quickly too and and they failed to score in a massive nine games during that run. A surprise win over Manchester City in March lifted the hopes of a miracle escape but they never materialised. A particularly costly 1:0 defeat at the hands of Leicester pretty much ended any realistic chances and the Clarets were relegated a couple of weeks later. However, they go down with their heads held high as they never deviated from their style and never showed lack of fight and character. The team was just not good enough at the end but Dyche has moulded an excellent squad and the club should be optimistic about the future.
