Burnley boss Sean Dyche looking forward to Aberdeen test

Burnley have been drawn to face the Dons in the Europa League second qualifying round.

And, having pulled out one of the tougher opponents they could have, Dyche knows his players - who will be in the middle of their pre-season preparations - will have to be ready.

The first leg will be at Pittodrie on Thursday, July 26th, with the return at Turf Moor a week late, and Dyche said: “Everyone knows it could have been anything, looking at the draw with the amount of different teams from different countries involved.

“And lo and behold we get someone just up the road.

“But we’ve worked hard to get here and we’ll look forward to the challenge it brings.

“We know we won’t be travelling far, so it won’t be too unfamiliar.

“And it brings focus to the end part of the pre-season now that we know who we’ve got and we can prepare for what should be a competitive cup tie alongside our planning for the Premier League.”

Aberdeen boss Derek McInnes is equally anticipating an interesting Battle of Britain: “It’s a fantastic draw.

“We’ll be playing against a team that has done exceptionally well in what is regarded as the best league in the world.

“It should be a fabulous contest. There are favourites in every tie and they’re seeded for a good reason.

“We know we’ll be big underdogs for this one but, rest assured, we’ll be doing all we possibly can to cause an upset.

“There will be a terrific atmosphere at Pittodrie and I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s a sellout.”

Aberdeen, four-time Scottish champions, won the European Cup Winners’ Cup under Sir Alex Ferguson in 1983, adding the Super Cup that year.

In 1986 they reached the quarter-finals of the European Cup and in 2007/08 made it out of the group stage of the UEFA Cup.

They have played in the Europa League for the past four seasons but not made it beyond the third qualifying stage.