"We all love to defend," declares Burnley midfielder Josh Brownhill

Burnley's desire to dig in and defend is what stands them out from the rest in the Premier League, according to midfielder Josh Brownhill.
Josh Brownhill of Burnley warms up prior to the Premier League match between Burnley and Wolverhampton Wanderers at Turf Moor on December 21, 2020 in Burnley, England.Josh Brownhill of Burnley warms up prior to the Premier League match between Burnley and Wolverhampton Wanderers at Turf Moor on December 21, 2020 in Burnley, England.
Josh Brownhill of Burnley warms up prior to the Premier League match between Burnley and Wolverhampton Wanderers at Turf Moor on December 21, 2020 in Burnley, England.

Only three clubs - Aston Villa, Southampton and Manchester City - can better the Clarets' six clean sheets so far this term, and only five, with the inclusion of Spurs and Arsenal, have shipped less goals.

And with the exception of the five goals leaked at the Etihad Stadium, Sean Dyche's side haven't conceded more than once in a game since the end of October.

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“Not many teams do like to defend, but we pride ourselves on that,” said Brownhill.

Josh Brownhill of Burnley breaks past Rodrigo Moreno of Leeds United during the Premier League match between Leeds United and Burnley at Elland Road on December 27, 2020 in Leeds, England.Josh Brownhill of Burnley breaks past Rodrigo Moreno of Leeds United during the Premier League match between Leeds United and Burnley at Elland Road on December 27, 2020 in Leeds, England.
Josh Brownhill of Burnley breaks past Rodrigo Moreno of Leeds United during the Premier League match between Leeds United and Burnley at Elland Road on December 27, 2020 in Leeds, England.

“We work really hard, all of us out of possession. A lot of teams in this division keep the ball quite well and our game plan is to stay in our shape, be difficult to beat and not give many easy chances.

“We know what we are and how we go about our business in games. We understand that we have to defend quite a lot and we all enjoy it.

“We don’t create loads of chances but we have people who can score and take chances.

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“We don’t score three, four or five goals every week. It might be one or two and we know if we get ourselves in front we are going to be difficult to beat, so that first goal for us is always vital.”

Josh Brownhill of Burnley and Ben Osborn of Sheffield United clash during the Premier League match between Burnley and Sheffield United at Turf Moor on December 29, 2020 in Burnley, England.Josh Brownhill of Burnley and Ben Osborn of Sheffield United clash during the Premier League match between Burnley and Sheffield United at Turf Moor on December 29, 2020 in Burnley, England.
Josh Brownhill of Burnley and Ben Osborn of Sheffield United clash during the Premier League match between Burnley and Sheffield United at Turf Moor on December 29, 2020 in Burnley, England.

Burnley were eight games into the campaign before registering their first win, but they've since turned things around to open up a five-point cushion from the bottom three.

The Clarets have clocked up 11 points from their last six fixtures in the top flight, which culminated with a 1-0 win over struggling Sheffield United at Turf Moor.

After their scheduled New Year’s date with Fulham was postponed, Burnley now welcome MK Dons in the FA Cup tomorrow.

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And Brownhill is looking forward with optimism. He said: “There’s a lot of experience here. It’s never been easy but we’ve always come out on the right side. I don’t think it will be any different this year.

“We’ve had our slow start to the season and I feel now we’ve got our confidence back and the points on the board we’ll kick on and get ourselves up the table.

“I feel the results we’ve had in the past few weeks have been really deserved. We’ve put in some really good performances.

“We’ve put in some really good defensive performances as well, which is a strength of ours. We all love to defend.”

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Burnley's trip to Stamford Bridge to take on Chelsea at the end of the month will mark the first anniversary of Brownhill's switch from Bristol City.

The midfielder, who started out at Preston North End, has really grown into his role alongside Ashley Westwood since Project Restart.

“The last few months I have been thinking it’s coming around fast that I have been here a year,” said Brownhill, who had boasted the most interceptions in the league ahead of last weekend’s round of games.

“I think I have grown massively. Adapting to the Premier League you sort of have to do it quickly when you start playing, otherwise you can get found out quite quickly.

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“Also, I am 25 now so I am getting to the age where I am getting into my prime.

“I’m enjoying it a lot. It’s always what I wanted to do – play in the Premier League.

“It was always going to be difficult with the quality of players we’ve got here."

He added: “I knew when I signed, I wasn’t going to go straight into the team. They were on a really good run of form and playing really well.

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“I knew I had to learn what it’s about, train hard and get myself up to full fitness for the Premier League, which is a different type of fitness which you only realise when you’re playing.

“It was massive for me to get that under my belt quickly and then everything that went on with the Coronavirus gave me the opportunity to play and I’ve never looked back since then.

“I feel like I’ve taken my opportunity well and hopefully my performances can keep improving.”