Heaton hails unity of miserly Clarets

However, having made the switch to Turf Moor over the summer, he now has two shutouts in four games.

He has yet to experience defeat with the Clarets in competitive action - and in Burnley’s only pre-season loss at Morecambe, he was replaced at the break with the game goal-less!

It’s a pleasant change for the 27-year-old after a difficult campaign last time out, as Bristol City finished bottom of the Championship, conceding a divisional high 84 goals.

He has only conceded twice so far this term, however, against Bolton and Sheffield Wednesday, and has already established himself as a favourite with the fans.

And he said: “Last season for me was tough in terms of conceding a lot of goals.

“The difference between that and this season has been great - people heading, tackling, diving in front of the ball before it gets to me has been fantastic.

“You can sort of see the unity we’ve got as a team but as a back four and a defensive unit.”

That defensive solidity hasn’t come at a cost to their attacking intent either, with eight goals scored in that time by five different players, and he added: “In the Bolton game we played some really good stuff and it was a solid start with a few flashes of what we’re all about.

“The York game we played some good stuff at times and then stood up to a physical challenge when they came at us, and again against Sheffield Wednesday.

“We perhaps didn’t live up to some of the football that we’ve played so far, but we got two goals ahead and against an aerial bombardment we stood up to it, defended well and put bodies on the line. You can’t buy that. That’s the sort of thing that does win you football matches, especially in a division where everything’s so tight and games are going to be tight.

“If you’ve got a team that can do that and are willing to do that it’s always going to stand you in good stead.

“The important thing is that we make sure we keep doing it. It feels solid at the minute. You don’t want to talk too soon in football but it’s felt solid in the games so far.”