Burnley have collected all four of their Premier League points at Turf Moor this season — a statistic that could give Leeds United reason for concern as they head to Lancashire this weekend.

However, Daniel Farke’s side will travel with renewed confidence after securing their first away victory of the season against Wolves before the international break.

Positive team news
Farke began his pre-match press conference with an encouraging injury update. The German coach confirmed that most of his squad had returned to training ahead of the Burnley clash, a game that could lift Leeds into the top half of the table — a major boost in their bid to steer clear of the relegation zone.

“Today was more or less the first time the players have all been back together,” said Farke. “Several have returned to the training pitch, while others needed individual recovery sessions.

“We’ll have the full group together tomorrow in the final session, so preparation has been a bit tricky — but we’re used to that. We’ll make some late decisions after the final session tomorrow afternoon before travelling to Burnley.”

Mixed injury updates
Farke also provided more detail on individual fitness concerns, delivering a mixture of good and bad news regarding several key players.

“The good news with Lucas Perri is that he’s been able to train with us for the past two weeks and used the international break to build up his fitness,” Farke explained.

“With Willy Gnonto, he won’t be available for this game. His calf issue is fine, but he used the break to have a small hernia operation. It’s not major — he should be back in training next week and could be available for West Ham on October 24.

“Dan James is slightly ahead of schedule with his recovery, which is credit to our medical department and rehab coaches. He’s been in training and could be in the squad, though he’s not ready to start. I honestly didn’t expect that.

“Noah Okafor is struggling a bit with some abductor issues.”

Not a ‘must-win’ game
Farke was then asked whether the Burnley match was a must-win encounter for his newly promoted side.

“All Premier League games are big — all 38 of them,” he said. “You have to prepare for each one as if it’s a festive period match; otherwise, you have no chance at this level.

“It’s definitely not a must-win game. As a newly promoted side playing away, you’re always the underdog. Burnley had a fantastic season last year with 100 points — they were our two toughest games. We didn’t beat them last season, and we still won the league with 100 points, so it’s certainly not must-win.”

Tough run ahead
Looking ahead, Leeds face a challenging run of fixtures against Burnley, Brighton, West Ham, and Nottingham Forest — all sides currently in the lower half of the table. But Farke dismissed any suggestion that the schedule might be easier.

“It doesn’t matter where you pick up points — you can take them as an underdog against top teams too,” he said. “We need to maintain an average of at least one point per game.

“I wouldn’t call this an easier period. If anything, it’s more difficult — we have three away matches and just one at home.

“Our performances over the last four games have been excellent; we probably deserved more points. The level’s been solid, maybe even unlucky at times.”