eeMa 20 Burnley will be embarking on their fifth consecutive season in the Premier League and they look well placed to stay there.
A quickfire turnaround has given clubs very little time to adjust their pack ahead of the 2020-21 campaign. That could benefit the Clarets as they already have a squad that finished the season strongly and are high on confidence.
The squad depth is a little lacking, though, so it's unlikely that Sean Dyche will be chasing a run in one of the cup competitions.
Burnley were due to host Manchester United on the coming weekend but the fixture was postponed because of the latter's participation in the UEFA Europa League.
That means they kick-off their league campaign away to Leicester a week further down the line.
Recapping pre-season
The Clarets have played a number of concurrent matches in order to fast-track their squad to full fitness. Results have been mixed but manager Sean Dyche but he will take a lot of heart out of the matches.
Will Norris kept a clean sheet in his debut against Preston North End in a 0-0 draw. In the same match, academy talents Bobby Thomas and Jimmy Dunne were partners in the centre of defence.
The likes of Max Thompson and Lewis Richardson have also featured. Thompson found the net in a comprehensive 4-1 victory over Hearts.
Johann Berg Gudmundsson and Robbie Brady have looked to step-up their fitness levels with the former getting involved amongst the goals.
Transfer Business
Arrivals:
Will Norris (Free, Wolverhampton Wanderers)
The 27-year-old arrives on the back of a successful year with Ipswich Town on a season-long loan. He is a direct replacement for the departing Joe Hart.
Departures:
Jeff Hendrick (Free, Newcastle United)
Joe Hart (Free, Tottenham Hostpur)
Aaron Lennon (Free, Kayserispor)
Adam Legzdins (Released)
Ben Gibson (Loan, Norwich City)
Four of the five players were released in July with three of them finding new employers.
Regarding the fifth player, Gibson will be simply happy to have found himself a new challenge, albeit temporarily, after burning his bridges with Dyche.
Who is Burnley's key player?
Nick Pope was phenomenal in the season just gone and finished second in the race for the Golden Glove, missing out to Ederson Moraes on the final game-week.
Last season, the 28-year-old made high claims than any other Premier League goalkeeper. He had 22 more than Ben Foster (30) who sat second in that table. It illustrates his self-confidence to take situations into his own hands, removing the pressure from those in front of him. And that is why he is so key.
Joe Hart wasn't necessarily as bad as certain fans made him out to be. But the former Manchester City star was often reluctant to come off his line.
Pope's commanding presence has pushed the Burnley resilience to the next level.
A breakthrough talent
Max Thompson
22 July 2020. The Clarets lost 5-0 to Man City, Dyche was publicly at loggerheads with Mike Garlick and a Burnley fan infamously flew an "All Lives Matter" banner over the stadium. It was also the first-team debut for young Thompson!
The 18-year-old rose through the Manchester United youth setups before moving to the Everton academy.
In 2019, he signed an 18-month contract with the Clarets.
Thompson has impressed with the Burnley U18s and has made a good impact in pre-season.
It will be tough for the developing talent to burst into the starting eleven like Dwight McNeil, but the striker is pushing hard for his chance.
Key dates
Sunday, 20 September - Matchday One | Leicester vs Burnley
Saturday, 26 September - Matchday Two | Burnley vs Southampton
Saturday, 26 December - Matchday 15 | Leeds United vs Burnley
Saturday, 2 January - Matchday 17 | Burnley vs Fulham
Sunday, 23 May - Matchday 38 | Sheffield United vs Burnley
Writer's verdict
Burnley still need to add one or two players to their ranks but the squad is still in relatively good shape. It is a group that is packed with character, experience and leadership.
Nonetheless, a lack of genuine investment is likely to result in a small decline. Some players might get comfortable with the lack of competition in their position and that could lead to some unintentional performance slumps.
Burnley will be comfortably safe in the hands of Dyche. He has instilled a mentality that demands maximum effort and resilience at all times. It's tough to relegate a unit that is all pushing in one direction. But it's tough to see an improvement on last season's finish of 10th.
Somewhere in the bottom half seems likely.