When Lesley Ugochukwu and Loum Tchaouna were scholars in the Rennes youth team, they were probably fantasising about playing in the Premier League, but probably not for Burnley. They have reunited at Turf Moor, where the club and French duo are living out their dream. It was their goals that downed Leeds and offered further proof the Clarets have a chance of staying up.
Burnley have now defeated the two teams that came up with them from the Championship at home and have collected all of their seven points here. They showed they have improved since promotion, epitomised by a goal-of-the-season contender from Tchaouna to add to his old mate’s opener.
The two joined forces more than a decade ago, before reaching their teenage years, in north-west France, moving up the ranks to the first team before separating to add Lazio and Chelsea to their collective CVs without settling. This was the first time they were on the winning side together since beating Mérignac in May 2022, when Désiré Doué and Mathys Tel were leading the line.
Burnley will not be concerned about the route they took to Lancashire, but that they managed to attract young talents, offering them a platform to grow in the Premier League. Ugochukwu never looked like being a regular at Stamford Bridge and suffered through a loan spell in a dreadful Southampton team, but he is coming of age alongside Tchaouna.
“Relationships and bonds that people bring together, and then you’re reconnected later on, for sure it helps,” Scott Parker said of the pair. “These players have got huge pedigree and quality. We wouldn’t have signed them if we didn’t see that.
“Lesley’s coming off the back of two goals in two games, Loum will have finished the day on a high. His goal is right up there with maybe a goal in a season, so it was perfect.”
The likelihood of this match being a classic was nonexistent in the opening stages as neither team produced any notable quality in possession. Burnley’s most promising outlet was Ugochukwu in central midfield. He was the victim of two fouls as he caused problems and Leeds struggled with his athleticism and driving runs.
It would have been sensible to pay him close attention, but the Leeds defence forgot he existed. Kyle Walker was given plenty of space on the right to whip in the perfect cross and Ugochukwu was able to head home from six yards.
Burnley’s survival hopes will rest finding consistent scorers. Last season, Josh Brownhill topped the charts with 18 goals from midfield and those will need replacing, especially as they do not possess a prolific striker. Ugochukwu netted once at Southampton, but this was his second in two games, showing he is finding the right positions.
Liverpool are the only away team to win here in the league in the past 17 months. Leeds hit a post in the first half, but lacked creativity in midfield, making life comfortable for Burnley. They had 19 shots but only four on target, a sign of their failings.
“We won each and every statistic, but in football it is also just about goals,” Daniel Farke said. “They were more effective than us. Once you miss so many clear chances, the expected goals, shots on target, blocks, we were so clearly the better side.”
Ceding possession and territory is a dangerous game, but Burnley are the masters. Leeds were having all the ball and should have tested Martin Dubravka when Sean Longstaff chipped a cross to an unmarked Jack Harrison, but he volleyed into the ground and wide from inside the area.
Burnley did not have the ambition to attack and the second came as a surprise to everyone. Walker burst down the right to wake up the crowd and the claret-clad forwards, but no one could keep up with the right-back, who had to play it backwards. Tchaouna, who had been on the pitch 10 minutes, has shown glimpses of his ability since joining from Lazio this summer, but few expected him to pick out the top corner from 30 yards, making the moment and roar more spectacular.
At this point no one was concerned about whether Burnley would hold on. Parker said: “I had a feeling with us that we’d protect our goal like our life depended on it. That’s a mentality and we did that extremely well.”
Before the game, the Leeds striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin refused to join other players in taking the knee on the Premier League’s No Room For Racism weekend. Some players have previously expressed concern about the effectiveness of the campaign.
