Former Burnley captain Frank Sinclair fears that Clarets manager Sean Dyche has been left “quite bare” in attack for Monday’s Premier League clash against Manchester City.
As noted by Burnley Express, he will be without Ashley Barnes for the trip to the Etihad Stadium because of complications arising from a double hernia operation, while Chris Wood is also doubtful due to an Achilles problem.
Sinclair feels that the attacking duo would be a huge loss against the reigning champions. He told Genting Bet [via Burnley Express]: “If Burnley lose Ashley Barnes and Chris Wood, it would leave a big impact as they are number one and number two strikers.
“It will only leave two other strikers in the form of Rodriguez and Vydra, who came into a little bit of form before the pandemic paused the season. He was playing really well and the stop start of the season probably would affect him more than anything because of the confidence that he had at the time scoring some good goals.
“But it’s going to be a difficult one because, we know Sean Dyche and Burnley like to play with two strikers. And if you’ve got Ashley Barnes and Chris Wood out of the team, it leaves you quite bare.”
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It’s not hard to see why Sinclair is worried about the absences of Barnes and Wood, given that the pair have contributed 17 goals between them this season and are two of Burnley’s three top scorers. The probable loss of the 11-goal New Zealand striker could make things especially complicated for Dyche against Manchester City.
However, Sinclair did also note that the Clarets would still have Rodriguez and Vydra to call upon, with both showing that they can plunder goals. The England forward has eight to his name for the season while the Czech international scored twice in quick succession before the campaign was halted earlier in the year.
Indeed, the duo played up top together for a spell in February and the partnership clicked to great effect against Bournemouth in particular, when they were both on target in a 3-0 win. Also, Rodriguez has already scored in Manchester this season, courtesy of his rocket at Old Trafford in January.
Sinclair is right to have concerns about Wood and Barnes not being able to feature against Manchester City, although Dyche can take solace from having two decent alternatives in Rodriguez and Vydra to call upon – so long as they can step up to the mark in the absences of their attacking team-mates.
Burnley fans, do you share Sinclair’s concerns about Wood and Barnes missing the Manchester City game next Monday? Have your say by commenting below!
