Phil Bardsley relishing battle for right back berth

The former Manchester United man put in a man of the match display against Leeds United in the Carabao Cup tie at Turf Moor on Tuesday night, and he’s hoping that he’s given boss Sean Dyche some food for thought.

He has yet to make an appearance in the Premier League since arrivivng from Stoke City in the summer, having featured in the Carabao Cup win at Blackburn Rovers, and he said: “It’s nice to play football, I love playing football and I always have, and I’ll continue to enjoy it as long as I can keep running.

“I’ll keep working hard and hopefully get more chances.

“You’re waiting for your chance, watching the lads putting some really good performances in.

“It’s great to see, as frustrating as it can be when you’re not playing, but I’m a team player and I want the team to do well.

“We want to remain in the Premier League, that’s our incentive, and if we keep performing the way we are then we’re heading in the right direction.

“Lowts is a good lad, we’ve got a great group of players here and we’ll all fighting to play, it’s not personal between me and Lowts, we’re both trying to play football on a regular basis and that’s the be all and end all of it.

“We’ve got a good dressing room, everyone is working hard for each other to try and get the best out of each other, we’ll continue to do that and hopefully that can bring success to the club.”

The 32-year-old, who made six appearances for the Clarets on loan in 2006, added: “I’ve been training really hard to get my fitness to where I want it to be.

“Credit to the staff who have worked hard with me and we’re reaping the rewards now.”