Feelgood factor comes flooding back: Verdict as Burnley put Luton Town to the sword on the opening weekend

After the pure misery of last season’s Premier League relegation, many of us feared – perhaps understandably so – that it might take a while for the fun to return. But we needn’t have worried.

As statement victories go, this is about as good as it gets. For any new manager to win their first game is good, but to do it at the home of a direct promotion rival in such emphatic fashion? Talk about laying down a marker.

The message sent out to the rest of the Championship is clear, but perhaps more significantly, there’s a feelgood factor among the fanbase again after just 90 minutes of football. It’s incredible how quickly things can change.

Ruthless

The statistics might tell you this wasn’t a 4-1 game, Burnley ended the match with an Expected Goals (xG) of 1.46 to Luton’s 1.43. But the Clarets did to Luton what so many teams in the top flight inflicted on them last season. They were utterly clinical and any weaknesses were pounced upon in ruthless fashion.

Tactically Scott Parker got it absolutely spot on. The 43-year was understandably delighted with how his players performed, both in possession and out of possession. But coming to Kenilworth Road, you know you have to stand up and be counted and show a different side to your game.

A couple of years ago, Burnley blew us away with Kompany-ball during their opening day win at Huddersfield. On this occasion, they still played plenty of good stuff – you don’t win 4-1 without showing a bit of pizazz – but it was based on solid foundations, pace on the counter, playing in the right areas and not overplaying. Without getting too carried away, if that’s the blueprint for the season, it could well be a good one.

And how many times last season did we see the Clarets wilt as soon as they conceded? Not on this occasion. Once the hosts got a goal back at the start of the second-half you were expecting a predictable onslaught of pressure, but it didn’t really arrive. Instead, Burnley managed the situation well and simply went about their business in a professional manner, adding two further goals to put the game to bed.

Just one game into the new season, Burnley look like they have developed a backbone. To those on the outside, that might not sound like much, but to Burnley fans it means everything. It’s the club’s identity.

More to come

The Clarets still have bundles of talent at their disposal, you only have to look at the players that didn’t even make the squad on Monday night to see there’s even more to come. It feels like they’ve almost got a Championship dream team.

But when you add that quality to the extra ingredients Parker is after, it makes for a deadly combination.

As for those that did feature, Josh Brownhill – the scorer of Burnley’s opener – typified the display, producing both quality while also covering every blade of grass.

The midfielder, who is a real top talent at this level, dispatched his sixth-minute effort with aplomb after latching onto Lucas Pires’ clever through-ball.

Speaking of Pires, the left-back – one of two Brazilian’s in Burnley’s starting line-up – enjoyed a debut to remember. Providing not one, but two assists – also producing the cross for Dara O’Shea’s glancing header – all while looking settled and at home. He could easily have had a couple of goals too.

Burnley’s second later in the first-half was a virtual carbon copy of the first. They had clearly identified a chink in Luton’s armour, that being their vulnerability to a ball in behind. On this occasion that came down the right flank, with Connor Roberts playing Wilson Odobert in. The Frenchman, whose pace terrified Luton all night long, just as Luca Koleosho did on the other side, did the rest, coolly slotting past the goalkeeper after going through one on one.

It’s a cliché, but when you’re heading into the break two goals to the good you know the next goal is going to be crucial. But having said that, Luton got it and it still had no effect on the end result.

It was a sloppy goal to concede, but you never felt a sense of nervousness from the Burnley players when it would have been easy to go under. It felt inevitable there would be 15, 20 or even 25 minutes of sustained pressure on James Trafford’s goal, setting up a nervy finish, but it didn’t transpire at all.

Instead, Burnley simply got back on the horse and re-established their two goal lead courtesy of the aforementioned O’Shea header, which prompted delirious celebrations among the 1,300 Burnley fans housed behind the goal.

To add further gloss to the scoreline, the ever-industrious Vitinho added a fourth with a powerful drive that flew off the inside of the post and into the roof of the net. But the goal owed everything to Lyle Foster’s stunning turn and run from the edge of his own box to that of Luton’s, before still having the wherewithal to play Vitinho in.

There was a stunning simplicity to Burnley’s play, as evidenced by the two first-half goals. They manipulated space in behind their admittedly youthful backline and executed pinpoint passes.

One Luton fan remarked to me how it felt like men against boys. How often did we hear that from Burnley fans last season? It’s nice for the shoe to be on the other foot for a change.

One step at a time and all that, but this feels like a completely different Burnley just 90 minutes into a new season. After last season’s disaster, it feels pretty good doesn’t it?