Pressure is all on Blackburn

Burnley host Rovers at Turf Moor (kick-off 12-15 p.m.), having failed to beat their old rivals in 10 meetings, going back to 1979.

Dyche becomes the first Burnley boss to manage in three of these fixtures since the late, great Harry Potts, and he is in a relaxed frame of mind: “From my point of view, there is an expectation on Blackburn because of the history, in not beating them in 34 years.

“The expectation is on them winning. For us, it is about turning the game into what we’re about, and delivering a performance that gives us a chance to win. The bookies will all look at them doing it again, but our job is to try and make sure we have a chance of changing the record.”

Burnley came within seconds of winning at Ewood Park in March, only for an off-side equaliser from David Dunn to extend an unwanted run.

But Dyche won’t be using that as motivation: “The main thing I’ve spoken to the players about, is what we’ve said from pre-season onwards. You want to know your team is competitive. You can’t guarantee wins, but you can guarantee performance levels.

“The main markers are that competitive nature, and there have been good signs of that.”

He accepts it is no other game, but added: “The games have a different feel about them, they have that extra spice, but the main thing is delivering a performance - there’s no difference when you cut through it, the outcome is the same, a win means three points. It’s different for the fans obviously, but a professional’s job is to deliver a performance that can beat Blackburn.”

Dyche has the choice of sticking with the side that won 3-0 at Derby last time out, or handing new signing Michael Kightly a debut: “That’s part of the job, to make those decisions. We feel Michael can add to the squad with his quality.

“We’re still in the market for a centre forward, still searching that out - we did attempt to get one in before the deadline, but the finances were not available to make that happen.”

Have your say! Will Burnley beat Blackburn tomorrow?