Preview: Burnley vs. Cardiff City - prediction, team news, lineups

Champions Burnley head into their final Championship game of the season with Cardiff City looking for the victory which will move the club past 100 points.

Although Cardiff make the trip to Turf Moor sitting in 21st position in the standings, they have secured their status in the second tier for another 12 months.

Match preview

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When Burnley surprisingly lost their unbeaten home record in defeat to Queens Park Rangers, Vincent Kompany would have been left furious, yet it is that setback that realigned his team's focus for the following fixtures.

The Championship title was sealed with a hard-earned 1-0 triumph at neighbours Blackburn Rovers before they made it two away wins in quick succession with a 2-1 victory at Bristol City.

Those successes were required to keep Burnley in the hunt for 101 points, and that total is very much within their grasp ahead of their final game of the season.

For all of their standout performances at Turf Moor this campaign, Burnley have only prevailed in three of their last six outings on familiar territory.

Just one clean sheet has been recorded in four matches, too, leaving Kompany to demand one more display from his side ahead of their return to the Premier League.

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From Cardiff's perspective, the hard work was done when they edged out relegation rivals Rotherham United to seal their survival in the Championship.

The feeling of their target being met was shown in their next game three days later as they went down 2-1 at home to Huddersfield Town, who posted a win that ultimately put them on the brink of their own survival.

Sabri Lamouchi can be left satisfied with the job that he has done with the Bluebirds, yet nine defeats have still come from his 17 matches in charge.

Regardless of the result on Monday, discussions will be had ahead of the summer to determine whether the Lamouchi and the Cardiff board can find common ground to move forward as a team.

To the Welsh side's credit, they travel to Burnley on the back of two consecutive away wins, beating Watford before the pivotal triumph at Rotherham.

Team News

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Kompany has suggested that Southampton loanee Nathan Tella - a key player in the squad - may be able to return from injury to play some part on Monday.

Further rotation is expected from the Belgian with Jay Rodriguez potentially making his first start since January and Charlie Taylor featuring at centre-back.

Johann Berg Gudmundsson and Anass Zaroury are also in contention after being rested for the Bristol City game.

Cedric Kipre will not feature for Cardiff due to surgery, while Joe Ralls, Callum O'Dowda and Kion Etete are all likely to miss out.

Lamouchi may switch to a back four with Mahlon Romeo and Perry Ng as the full-backs, while Andy Rinomhota and Isaak Davies could also be handed opportunities.

Burnley possible starting lineup:

Peacock-Farrell; Roberts, Harwood-Bellis, Taylor, Maatsen; Brownhill, Cullen; Manuel, Gudmundsson, Zaroury; Rodriguez

Cardiff City possible starting lineup:

Alnwick; Romeo, McGuinness, Simpson, Ng; Sawyers, Rinomhota, Wintle; Ojo, Davies, Philogene

We say: Burnley 2-0 Cardiff City

Basing this on each team's last respective performances, one team will be motivated and the other less so. With that in mind, we expect the Clarets to cruise to a comfortable win, crowning their promotion campaign in the style in which it has been achieved.

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