Can newly promoted Burnley 'do a Leicester' in the Premier League?
Sean Dyche's team beats QPR to return to top flight – as bookies slash odds on them winning the title next year
Leicester City are not the only team celebrating today - Burnley confirmed their return to the Premier League with a win over Queens Park Rangers on Monday.
With one game to play, the team are two points clear of Middlesbrough and Brighton at the top of the Championship table, but as those two teams play each other on the final day of the season, Sean Dyche's team can finish no lower than second.
"The last time Burnley were promoted to the Premier League they came up in second place, nine points behind Leicester City," notes Paul Wilson in The Guardian.
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That was in 2014 and their stay at the top table was a short one. While the Foxes staged a remarkable escape act to avoid relegation, Burnley were not so lucky, winning only seven of their matches all season.
Consequently, although they are now heading back to the promised land, their recent experiences mean "the feelgood factor surrounding the club comes firmly tethered to realism", adds Wilson.
Dyche appeared to acknowledge that when he asked fans to "just be lenient and give us maybe 48 hours" to enjoy promotion before writing off their chances.
But who would write off any team after this season? "Leicester have just proved the extent of what is possible," says Wilson. "If you were quick, you could have got odds of 5,000-1 on Burnley for next season's Premier League title with one bookmaker on Monday – but no longer."
Indeed, Burnley's odds are now 2,000-1, reports The Sun, which claims the team have had so much support since promotion was confirmed that the bookies will face an even bigger payout than they do after Leicester's triumph.
The goal that confirmed the Clarets' promotion came from Sam Vokes in front of their own fans.
Despite being criticised by some for the quality of their football this season, Burnley have surged to the top of the Championship on the back of a 22-match unbeaten run, after what the BBC calls "an indifferent first half of the campaign, which saw them eight points adrift of the automatic promotion places on Boxing Day".
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