Burnley

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Burnley left it very late to rescue a draw from 2-0 down at home to West Ham in their season opener last weekend with both goals coming from striker Zian Flemming.

Keeping hold of the Dutchman could be vital to the Clarets in their bid to bounce straight back up following relegation from the Premier League last season, though that may now be in doubt with his omission from the squad today.

The character shown to fightback in that game will still have given new boss Nicky Hayen and the supporters reason for encouragement.

If Hayen can reinstill some of the defensive solidity that won Burnley promotion from the second tier two seasons ago and build on a more fluid and attacking style of play at the other end, then fans will remain fully behind the team.

But there is no way to sugar coat the reality for Burnley - their target will be to challenge at the top of the table, ideally starting with a first victory of the season today.

West Bromwich Albion

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Despite the fallout from their 2-1 win at Norwich City following Aune Heggebo's retrospective punishment for using his hand to score the opening goal at Carrow Road, West Bromwich Albion did still get three points on the board to start their season.

The debate over whether the Norway forward meant to use his hand will rumble on but focus must now turn to a tough game at The Hawthorns this afternoon.

After a torrid 2025-26, the Baggies will have been delighted to put the grim memories of last season behind them with victory, but supporters will be acutely aware that they did win three of their opening four games to start that campaign.

To continue the excellent progress they have been making under head coach James Morrison, Albion will be keen to keep momentum going in their first home game of this Championship season and maintain their 100% record.

West Brom have in fact lost just one of their past 12 league games (W5 D6) spanning over the end of last season and the start of this one and if a return to the Premier League for the first time since 2021 is to become a realistic aim, they'll need to keep up that kind of form.

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West Bromwich Albion boss James Morrison makes one enforced change to his side from the 2-1 win at Norwich.

Aune Heggebo is serving the first of his two-game ban for his handball goal at Carrow Road and is replaced in the starting line-up by Jayson Molumby.

Image source, Opta

Nicky Hayen has made two changes for Burnley from their 2-2 draw with West Ham.

The most obvious omission is that of striker Zian Flemming, who netted both goals for the Clarets at Turf Moor last weekend but is not in the squad.

Fear not just yet though, Clarets fans - boss Nicky Hayen says the Dutchman is out with a calf injury and is not excluded because of transfer speculation.

Armando Broja and Josh Laurent come into the side and Ugo Raghouber drops to the bench, while new signing Anel Ahmedhodzic is also among the subs.

West Bromwich Albion

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West Bromwich Albion will have to try and get their second win of the season on the board without striker Aune Heggebo.

The Norwegian has been banned for two matches by the Football Association (FA) for scoring a goal with his hand during the 2-1 opening day victory at Norwich City last weekend.

The FA alleged Heggebo did "successfully deceive a match official by handling the ball in a direct successful attempt to score a goal" with a regulatory commission upholding the misconduct charge - and subsequent suspension - on Thursday.

You can read more about the ban here - and a deeper dive on what this might mean for the game moving forward here.

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Don't look at the league table until at least 10 games have been played and all that...

But Charlton fans in particular might never forgive us if we don't at least acknowledge the fact they are in the automatic promotion places with a 100% winning record, behind Millwall.

West Bromwich Albion are the only other team left in the Championship who can maintain a perfect start if they beat Burnley this lunchtime.

The Clarets will be keen to get their first victory on the board sooner rather than later.

We had 11 games in the Championship yesterday and a few results that certainly jump off the page, perhaps none more so than West Ham's 2-1 defeat at home to Charlton in their first game at the London Stadium since relegation from the Premier League.

Blackburn also came from behind to beat Middlesbrough 2-1, while Millwall continued their 100% start with a 3-0 win against Norwich.

You can read the match reports for any of yesterday's games here.

Image source, Opta

Image source, Opta

Image source, Getty Images

Some very sad news to bring you before we get into the build-up for today's game.

Former West Bromwich Albion midfielder Quevin Castro has died at the age of 25 after collapsing during a match in Portugal.

He fell to the ground during the first half of third-tier Real Sport Clube's friendly against top-flight side Estrela de Amadora at the Estadio das Seixas in Lisbon on Saturday.

Castro, who is Portuguese but grew up in Thetford in Norfolk, will be honoured with a period of applause in the 25th minute this afternoon, while the players will also wear black armbands as a mark of respect.

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A good Sunday morning to you all.

And yes it is still the morning, but in just 20 minutes, we've got two clubs going head-to-head who have plenty of Premier League pedigree between them in recent times.

West Bromwich Albion have perhaps handed over the baton to Burnley as chief "yo-yo" club in the past couple of years, but the top flight is where these sides both ultimately aspire to be.

Nothing is won and lost in August of course, but it would lay down a nice early marker for either to pick up three points today.

Let's get into it.