A look at Burnley's record on the final day

A 1-1 draw against Aston Villa at Villa Park on Thursday evening saw Mike Jackson's side climb out of the bottom three, at the expense of Leeds United.

A significantly superior goal difference over Jesse Marsch's Yorkshire side mean that Burnley will retain their top-flight status for another season should they equal or better their fellow strugglers' result at Brentford at the same time.

However, a much-improved and in-form Newcastle side visit Lancashire on the final day, so the Clarets' job remains far from a simple one.

Ahead of their final game of the Premier League season on Sunday, Sports Mole takes a look at Burnley's record on the final day in recent years.

A stat that Burnley fans will certainly want to avoid ahead of Sunday's crucial match would be the one revolving around their record on the final day of Premier League seasons since returning to the top flight in 2016.

Five complete Premier League campaigns have been played out since earning promotion from the Championship, and Burnley have lost on the final day on each of those campaigns.

Beginning with the 2016-17 campaign, Sean Dyche's Burnley side had already reached the targeted 40-point mark two games prior to the final day hosting of West Ham United at Turf Moor.

Survival had already been confirmed in the weeks leading up to the clash with the Hammers, but despite this, they started brightly with Sam Vokes firing them into a lead midway through the first half.

However, Sofiane Feghouli equalised for Slaven Bilic's visitors, before Andre Ayew netted the winner 18 minutes from normal time to condemn the Clarets to a 2-1 defeat on that day.

Moving on to 2017-18, a club-record seventh-placed finish had already been achieved prior to the clash with Bournemouth at Turf Moor, meaning Burnley would be competing in the 2018-19 Europa League competition.

In an almost identical repeat of the previous year's final day, Dyche's men were beaten by a 2-1 scoreline on home soil yet again, despite taking the lead once more.

Chris Wood fired them into the lead on this occasion, but late goals from Joshua King and Callum Wilson saw Eddie Howe's Cherries inflict a repeat of the loss to West Ham a year earlier.

2018-19 saw Burnley struggle with the juggling of European football and domestic action side by side, but despite this, a late rally saw them reach the 40-point mark and all but seal their survival with three games to spare.

For a third consecutive final day, the Clarets played it out in front of their own supporters, but there would be no change to the outcome once more.

Arsenal were the visitors on this occasion, and Unai Emery's side ran out comfortable 3-1 winners thanks to a brace from Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, and a late third goal from Eddie Nketiah.

The COVID-19 pandemic struck in the 2019-20 campaign, delaying the end to the Premier League season by over two months, with Burnley's final game of the season finally arriving against Brighton & Hove Albion on July 26.

Turf Moor was once again the venue, and that dreaded 2-1 defeat was suffered once again for Dyche's outfit, although a successful 10th-placed finish was achieved regardless.

New Zealand striker Wood got himself on the scoresheet for the Clarets once again, but goals from Yves Bissouma and Aaron Connolly resulted in a fourth consecutive final day loss since returning to the Premier League.

Last but not least, Burnley finally had a final day away game in the 2020-21 season, with Dyche taking his side to face already-relegated Sheffield United at Bramall Lane.

Despite the struggles of their opponents, their fortunes did not change, with the Clarets suffering a 1-0 defeat courtesy of a David McGoldrick goal midway through the first half for the Blades, who were under the caretaker charge of Paul Heckingbottom at the time.

So Burnley fans are probably not too grateful for being reminded of their final day woes, although in previous years they have had nothing to play for.

However, in a strange twist, the Clarets have in fact come out victorious on matchday 38 in the Premier League on two previous occasions - 4-2 against Tottenham Hotspur in 2009-10 and 1-0 against Villa in 2014-15 - albeit on both occasions they suffered relegated out of the top flight anyway.

Should Jackson's side end their final day hoodoo by securing all three points against the Magpies on Sunday, there will be no such problem this time though, with a win guaranteeing their Premier League status for the 2022-23 campaign regardless of the result at the Brentford Community Stadium.