Burnley mark their return to the Premier League today with a tricky first fixture of the season away to Tottenham.
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Scott Parker returns to his old stomping ground to face the reigning Europa League winners, who are now under the management of ex-Brentford boss Thomas Frank after Ange Postecoglou’s axing.
Despite the European success, the Australian paid the price for a dreadful league campaign that saw Tottenham finish 17th after suffering 22 defeats.
As for Burnley, they will be looking to get up and running by avoiding defeat on their return to the top flight, following last season’s 100-point automatic promotion from the Championship.
The Clarets ended last season unbeaten in their last 33 games, with their last league defeat coming away to Millwall at the start of November.
Here’s all the important information ahead of today’s fixture:
When and where is the game taking place?
The match is being held at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Saturday, August 16. Kick-off is at 3pm.
Is it on TV?
No, it falls behind the UK’s Saturday 3pm blackout.
How else can I follow the game?
Burnley FC writer Matt Scrafton will be providing live updates on his X feed, followed by a match report, post-match reaction and further analysis on the Burnley Express’ website.
What’s the latest team news?
Burnley’s most recent signings – Martin Dubravka, Lesley Ugochukwu and Armando Broja – are all available for selection despite being at different stages of fitness.
Elsewhere, Axel Tuanzebe, Connor Roberts and Zian Flemming have all been training despite missing some of pre-season with knocks.
Jordan Beyer has suffered a setback in his long road back from serious injury, while Bashir Humphreys and Zeki Amdouni are both sidelined.
As for Spurs, a question mark remains over the availability of Yves Bissouma, who was left out of Tottenham’s midweek Super Cup game with PSG for disciplinary reasons.
Radu Dragusin, Dejan Kulusevski, Bryan Gil and James Maddison are all out, while Kota Takai and Destiny Udogie are both fitness doubts.
Scott Parker’s pre-match comments
“This is a brilliant game for us to open with, for sure. We're looking forward to it.
“We're in a good place. We've worked hard during pre-season. But then you never really know sitting in this position until the season starts and no doubt as the season gets going, you're always improving. But I think we're in a great place.
“Most of my pre-seasons are like this, trying to get us up to the best physical shape we can be in. The numbers suggest that, my eyes suggest that when I'm watching us train and where we currently are as a group, so we're in a good place in that sense.”
What are the predicted teams?
Spurs: Vicario, Porro, Romero, Van de Ven, Spence, Bentancur, Palhinha, Kudus, Bergvall, Johnson, Solanke
Burnley: Hladky, Sonne, Walker, Ekdal, Esteve, Hartman, Cullen, Ugochukwu, Hannibal, Anthony, Foster
Who is the referee?
Michael Oliver. The official took charge of 46 games last season, dishing out 204 yellow cards and nine reds. He last officiated Burnley in April 2024, when he dismissed Dara O’Shea during the 1-0 defeat to Everton at Goodison Park.
What are the latest odds?
Spurs: 1/3
Draw: 19/5
Burnley: 15/2
Odds according to SkyBet and correct at the time of writing.