Three Key Battles - Burnley

West Ham United head into their last Premier League game of the season knowing a win against Burnley at Turf Moor could see them finish as high as eleventh in the league table.

Defeat and an unfortunate swing of other results could potentially see Slaven Bilic’s team end the season in 16th, meaning Sunday’s Claret showdown is still of huge importance.

At home is where Sean Dyche’s side have picked up the majority of their 40 points so far this campaign, but the Hammers have beaten Burnley in the teams’ last four meetings and will be confident travelling to Lancashire.

For the last time this campaign, we’ve taken a look at three players from each side who could be going head-to-head on Sunday…

 

Lowton v Byram

With the right-backs in action at Turf Moor likely to be Matthew Lowton and Sam Byram, we’ve had a look at the statistics of the Leeds United academy pair.

Former Aston Villa man Lowton has played the majority of Burnley’s fixtures in the top flight this season, and the 27-year-old has a couple of assists to show for it.

Byram, on the other hand, has missed large chunks of the campaign through injury, but has impressed this year, contributing not only going forward but with his defensive duties, as the above statistics show.

The 23-year-old went close to scoring his first Hammers goal in the early stages of the side’s last fixture – against Liverpool – and will be hoping for an opportunity to have another crack on Sunday.

 

Westwood v Nordtveit

In midfield, Ashley Westwood has featured in Burnley’s last three matches, while Havard Nordtveit has also seen more game time in the second half of this season.

And the Norwegian Hammer has impressed in the centre of midfield, playing in his natural position after a stint at right-back earlier this term.

The former Borussia Monchengladbach man’s stats are good too, with more tackles, clearances and aerials won per game than Burnley’s Westwood.

With Mark Noble and Cheikhou Kouyate out the side with injury alongside Spaniard Pedro Obiang, Nordtveit is seizing his chance in the team and will hope to continue to do so at Turf Moor when he lines up against Dyche’s outfit.

 

Vokes v Ayew

Finally, the two goalscorers likely to line up against each other on Sunday are Sam Vokes – who has nine Premier League goals this season – and Andre Ayew, on five for the campaign.

The Ghanaian has been key since he returned from the African Cup of Nations in February, bagging four goals and making two in the 12 Premier League games since.

Vokes, of course, came into the season off the back of a terrific UEFA Euro 2012 campaign with Wales, and he’s carried on that excellent form to fire Burnley to safety this season.

With just two wins in 15 since the beginning of February though, the Clarets are in poor form and West Ham will be hoping to take advantage of that to end their season on a high note in the north west.