Nathan Tella scored a hattrick to help Burnley produce one of the most comfortable football results of the weekend in the Championship. Having performed well in the northwest, Tella, a 23-year-old Southampton loanee, was dubbed “a rough diamond” by manager Vincent Kompany last week. With just two losses in 30 games this season and a goal to match their 1913 record of 10 straight league victories, Burnley entered the game in the best shape of any Championship team since Reading in 2005–06, who went on to finish with an amazing 106 points. Therefore, the signs were very good for Kompany’s team, who has stood out this term. There was only ever going to be one victor when Tella took the match by the throat.
Although Ryan Lowe’s Preston team has struggled at home this season, they made the quick trip down the M65 encouraged by their eight road victories, which are tied for the league lead. At Turf Moor, they showed no signs of being intimidated throughout an engaging opening that included a lot of effort from both teams. The Clarets held the most of early possession, and the way they distributed the ball showed their confidence and Kompany’s work in practice. However, until Tella’s superb header after 15 minutes, neither team had shown a lethal instinct in front of the net.
Josh Brownhill’s corner was not successfully cleared by Preston, and when Brownhill had a second opportunity to put the ball into the box, he chose to find Tella, who was in a perfect position to score from five yards out. Anass Zaroury attempted to score for the home team after 51 minutes, but after a poor pass from Ben Whiteman, Tella did a far better job four minutes later, slamming the ball home from the edge of the box after turning Preston’s defense inside out. If the commotion inside Turf Moor was amplified by his low-rifled shot that narrowly missed Woodman’s near post, his treble at the 58-minute mark nearly brought the roof down. Tella maintained composure to finish off Woodman’s legs and score his hat trick, giving him a total of 14 goals.
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