Burnley had a full week to prepare for a thrilling Saturday night under the lights of Turf Moor when The Clarets take on Manchester United in the late kick-off.

Manchester United claimed a 2-0 League Cup win over Burnley at Old Trafford in the sides' most recent meeting last December.

However, Burnley held United to a 1-1 draw at Turf Moor in their last Premier League meeting (February 2022).

All in all, The Clarets are bidding to expose United's vulnerability right now in order to claim their first victory against them since January 2020, when Chris Wood and Jay Rodriguez both scored for Burnley's first win at Old Trafford since 1962.

The Clarets are still yet to pick up a win on their return to the Premier League, as they sit 19^th, collecting just one point from their opening four games.

However, Burnley just won their first league point earlier this week when the Clarets earned a 1-1 draw against Nottingham Forest at the City Ground on Monday night. Vincent Kompany's men thought they had taken a late lead, but a VAR decision (due to a handball) eventually saw them settle for a point.

Zeki Amdouni scored his second goal of the season (both of them against Burnley) and first in the Premier League. The Swiss striker, who joined Burnley from FC Basel over the summer, should keep his starting spot in Vincent Kompany's setup.

Amdouni scored 22 goals in 52 appearances in all competitions for FC Basel last term and will be eager to prove himself in a top league like the EPL.

Lyle Foster has been directly involved in three goals (two goals, one assist) in the Premier League. However, the South African centre-forward was sent-off late in the draw against Nottingham Forest and will serve a suspension.

Clarets' boss Vincent Kompany, who used to captain Manchester City not so long ago, admitted Foster will be a big miss for Burnley but he's confident others will step up in his absence. In addition to Foster's suspension, Hjalmar Ekdal, Darko Churlinov and Michael Obafemi are all injured for the home side.

Anass Zaroury, who was sent-off in Burnley's clash against Man City, served his suspension to return against Nottingham Forest last time out. The Morocco international could start against United on Saturday night. 

Nathan Tella, who scored 19 goals in all competitions for Burnley last season, joined Bundesliga side Bayer Leverkusen over the summer but Vincent Kompany bolstered his attack. 

Goalkeeper James Trafford - the England U21 hero during their European Championship triumph this summer - as well as the likes of Sander Berge, Jordan Beyer, Dara O'Shea, Luca Koleosho, Jacob Bruun Larsen and Mike Tresor were other notable signings for Burnley this summer.

Having been introduced as a late substitute at Nottingham Forest, deadline day signing Mike Tresor made his debut for Burnley and Vincent Kompany could be tempted to field him. The Belgian winger joined Vincent Kompany's project on a season long loan deal from Genk and could be one of the players to benefit from Foster's absence.

Still, Kompany could be looking for a tactical switch. He opted for a 5-4-1 system in Burnley's curtain-raiser against defending champion Manchester City and then switched to either a 4-4-2 or 4-2-3-1 formation in the next couple of games.

Having lost four of their last five matches in all competitions, Erik ten Hag's side travel to Lancashire to face Burnley in the Premier League, with three important points at stake at Turf Moor for both sides.

The Red Devils have lost three in a row and their 4-3 Champions League loss at the hands of Bayern Munich on Wednesday was yet another setback in the early weeks of Erik ten Hag's second season in charge.

Manchester United will be aiming to use their short trip to Burnley as a turning point of their season with a favorable schedule until next month's international break. They are set for four consecutive games at Old Trafford across multiple competitions. First, Erik ten Hag's side start their League Cup title defense with a match against Crystal Palace followed by another top-flight clash against them and a game with Brentford in their last match prior to the break. They'll also face Turkish giants Galatasaray in a Champions League tie sandwiched between the two Premier League fixtures.

The ongoing selection crisis doesn't make things easier but given the short turnaround between games and the busy schedule, Erik ten Hag could still be forced to reshuffle his pack. Thus, the Manchester United boss could hand starts to the likes of Scott McTominay, Alejandro Garnacho and Anthony Martial.

The Red Devils trained at the FC Bayern Campus on Thursday before flying back from Germany to prepare for Saturday's clash, with question marks around the availability of some players.

Indeed, the visitors will be without a handful of players missing for various reasons. Backup goalkeeper Tom Heaton as well as the likes of Luke Shaw, Tyrell Malacia, Aaron Wan-Bissaka are all injured, while Antony and Jadon Sancho are sidelined for disciplinary reasons. Meanwhile, ex-captain Harry Maguire, talented youngster Kobbie Mainoo and summer signing Sofyan Amrabat are all doubts ahead of the weekend.

Aaron Wan-Bissaka was only introduced as a late-substitute against Brighton and the right-back missed out United's midweek trip to Germany. Latest reports suggest that Wan-Bissaka could be out for a couple of weeks so Diogo Dalot is set to continue at right-back.  

Maguire missed out on the trip to Munich after reporting some 'complaints' in the last session at Carrington and, even though Raphael Varane and Mason Mount returned to the group session on Tuesday, the pair were not included in the 21-man squad for United's Champions League opener.

Elsewhere, Amrabat will be eager to make his first appearance for the club while Varane and Mount will be assessed right after Friday’s training session.

Summer signing Rasmus Højlund recovered from his back injury to feature in United's last three matches. He was only fit for a second half cameo against Arsenal prior to the international break but the Danish forward started both of the last two matches against Brighton and Bayern Munich. Højlund's goal against Brighton - a combination between him and Marcus Rashford - was ruled out but their second attempt against Bayern Munich was successful and Ten Hag will likely be looking to build on the partnership between them.

Meanwhile, Tunisian youngster Hannibal Mejbri had just scored his first senior goal for Manchester United - a consolation goal against Brighton last weekend. 

Burnley: James Trafford - Connor Roberts, Jordan Beyer, Ameen Al-Dakhil, Charlie Taylor - Josh Cullen, Josh Brownhill -  Anass Zaroury, Mike Tresor, Luca Koleosho - Zeki Amdouni. (4-2-3-1)

Manchester United: Andre Onana - Sergio Reguilon, Lisandro Martinez, Victor Lindelof, Diogo Dalot - Casemiro, Scott McTominay - Marcus Rashford, Bruno Fernandes, Facundo Pellistri - Rasmus Hojlund. (4-2-3-1)

Having conceded at least two goals in their last five matches, Manchester United will desperately need a stronger defensive performance if they are to stop the rot.

Whereas United hint to be relatively sharp at the business end of the pitch, with the integration of Rasmus Højlund, their defensive woes remain a serious cause of concern - something the home side will be looking to expose.

Another loss could be a serious hit over Erik ten Hag's image and even though the vast majority of the Manchester United supporters are still backing him, things can change suddenly.

Furthermore, when you consider United's near-perfect record away from home against the bottom half last season (in stark contrast with their matches against top half opponents), it's a game they are very capable of winning.

The Red Devils took 25 points from 30 available and conceded just five goals in 10 matches against bottom half opposition last season. Nine of those 10 games on the road against the bottom 10 clubs last season also fell under the 2.5 goal line. With that said, United should take the points in what we expect to be a close, cagey contest.