Vincent Kompany delivers glowing Sunderland verdict with Burnley striker a doubt for Championship fixture

The Clarets were 2-0 down at half-time when the sides last met at the Stadium of Light back in October, but came back to win 4-2 following an emphatic second half.

Since then Burnley have lost just one league game and opened up a 13-point lead at the top of the Championship, ahead of Friday’s match against Sunderland at Turf Moor.

When reflecting on that aforementioned reverse fixture, Kompany said: “For me that game is still a game that sits very high on my list in terms of I still think we’ve got a lot to show in this game.

“The first half for me was the worst we’ve played this season, not in terms of the opposition because the opposition was good, but in terms of who we are as a team.

“I feel we still have a point to prove, it doesn’t matter whether we turn it on for 45 minutes and did well. For me we still have a point to prove in this game.

“For me I’m looking forward to hopefully being able to show the real side of us.”

Kompany was also complementary of Sunderland, who are 11th in the table and seven points off the play-off places ahead of their trip to Turf Moor.

“If football was a language I think we speak a similar language,” said Kompany when asked about Tony Mowbray’s side. “We are certainly from a similar family of languages, let's put it this way.

“There are many things they do that for me, I think the threat of the wingers is something that is similar and we have also quite a good threat with our wingers. The midfielders that get on the ball and actually progress play, their ability to switch play and create space for the wide men. The way they attack the box as well.

“They are on the front foot most of the time so it’s a team that at least on that side I understand very well because like I said we are from a similar family of football.

“Those games are also usually interesting not just for the fans of the two teams but I think for the neutral as well. I think it’s in the DNA of both teams to go forward in this game and that’s what will happen.”

Burnley had 13 players who were called up for their countries during this month’s international break, and the majority had returned to Lancashire before Kompany’s pre-match press conference on Thursday afternoon.

The only exception was striker Lyle Foster, who represented South Africa in an Africa Cup of Nations qualifying match and was delayed due to a passport issue.

“Everyone is back and fit but Foster has had a little bit of an issue getting back,” said Kompany. “I think something to do with passports. So he’s fit and healthy which is more important, but we’ve got still one player to come back.”