MX23RW : Wednesday, December 11 18:23:03| >> :600:196604:196604:

Vydra realises long-time goal for Burnley

The striker had not scored in the Premier League for more than four years.

Matej Vydra relished a goal a long time in the making after netting for Burnley against Bournemouth.

The Czech striker was handed a full debut by Sean Dyche for the clash at Turf Moor and responded with a sharp finish to score the opener in a much-needed 4-0 victory for the Clarets.

It was a second goal following his summer move from Derby for the 26-year-old, who also scored in the Europa League, but a first in the Premier League since a season-long loan at West Brom in 2013-14.

Vydra scored three times for the Baggies before moving on to Watford, Reading and then Derby,

He said on Clarets Player: "It's a little bit of a long time ago, but still the same feeling and maybe a little bit more because I was fighting to get into the Premier League for so many years.

"I enjoyed that moment. I think both goals brought more confidence to the team. The crowd was brilliant and I think everyone was happy after those two minutes."

Vydra's opener was quickly followed by a second for Aaron Lennon, and substitute Ashley Barnes scored twice late on as Burnley picked up their first league win to climb off the bottom of the table.

"It was good for everybody," said Vydra. "For the strikers, we scored four goals, and good for the defenders and goalkeeper because they kept a clean sheet. I think now we can breathe a little bit better, but still it's only one win."

Burnley's quartet of strikers, with Vydra and Barnes joined by Chris Wood and Sam Vokes, had drawn a collective blank in the first five games of the league season so their displays at Turf Moor were hugely encouraging for Dyche.

The Burnley boss said: "You could tell in the body language, the drive, the forcefulness of the side. Vydra's finish, Barnes' finish – rotates after the shot, drives into the box, gets a nice reward. They're all things that are important, that anticipation of the game, and when you're nervous and edgy, that often goes."

Dyche was frustrated not to do more business in the transfer window but at least appears to have decent strength in depth up front.

He said: "It's not rotation, it's effective partnerships. We're looking to play when we can but we're looking to use different weapons when we can and I think we've got four strikers who can all act slightly differently."

An excellent afternoon for Burnley was a reality check for Bournemouth after their flying start to the season, but boss Eddie Howe will not over-react.

Howe said: "Last week everyone was waxing lyrical about the team and I felt we weren't as good as everyone thought we were. I'm sure this week we will be on the other side of it where there'll be some hard words for the team but I don't think we were as bad as people may say."

Howe was also delighted to be able to call on Junior Stanislas, who made his first appearance since March off the bench after recovering from a serious knee injury.

"There were positives," said Howe. "I thought young David Brooks had a really good game and Junior coming back was a huge plus for us, he's a massive player."

ga('create', 'UA-72310761-1', 'auto', {'name': 'pacontentapi'});
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'referrer', location.origin);
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension1', 'By Eleanor Crooks, Press Association Sport');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension2', 'fe0bcdcd-c2a4-4d3d-aff0-bb6f937cebca');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension3', 'paservice:sport,paservice:sport:club-news,paservice:sport:football');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension6', 'story');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension7', 'composite');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension8', null);
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension9', 'sport:football');
ga('pacontentapi.send', 'pageview', { 'location': location.href, 'page': (location.pathname + location.search + location.hash), 'title': 'Vydra realises long-time goal for Burnley'});

ID:336452: cacheID:336452:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:5805:
Written by
P A
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Eden Hazard celebrates getting his side's first during the Premier League game between Chelsea and Cardiff City on September 15, 2018
Read Next:
PL Team of the Week - Hazard, De Gea, Arnautovic
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Leeds UnitedLeeds20125336142241
2Sheffield UnitedSheff Utd19125227111639
3Burnley2010822471738
4Sunderland20107329151437
5Blackburn RoversBlackburn1910452317634
6Middlesbrough209473425931
7Watford189362624230
8West Bromwich AlbionWest Brom1961122114729
9Swansea CitySwansea207672119227
10Norwich CityNorwich206863530526
11Bristol City206862525026
12Sheffield WednesdaySheff Weds207582329-626
13Millwall186752016425
14Luton TownLuton2064102335-1222
15Coventry CityCoventry195682527-221
16Derby CountyDerby205692226-421
17Stoke CityStoke205692126-521
18Preston North EndPreston1931061826-819
19Oxford UnitedOxford Utd184682028-818
20Queens Park RangersQPR193971826-818
21Portsmouth183872130-917
22Cardiff CityCardiff184591728-1117
23Plymouth ArgylePlymouth1945101940-2117
24Hull City1936101727-1015


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!