Burnley have risen above Middlesbrough to the top of the Championship table courtesy of a 1-0 win at Preston North End on Friday night.
Sean Dyche's side have moved onto 87 points - one ahead of second-placed Middlesbrough, who host Ipswich Town on Saturday afternoon. Third-placed Brighton & Hove Albion, meanwhile, are now three points off the summit in England's second tier.
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The visitors took the lead in the sixth minute when Joey Barton's free kick hit Alan Browne in the Preston wall and wrong-footed Chris Kirkland between the sticks.
Burnley might have scored a second in the 10th minute when Andre Gray whipped a low cross in to Sam Vokes, but the forward just could not make contact as Preston struggled to deal with the away side's tempo.
The opportunities continued to arrive for Burnley, and Gray came close with a header before Kirkland just beat Vokes to a loose ball inside the box.
Ben Mee had a golden chance to make it 2-0 in the 30th minute when he met a free kick from Barton, but the centre-back's header just dropped wide of the post as Preston survived another dangerous moment.
The home side continued to ride their luck as Gray had another close-range strike blocked 10 minutes before the break, but Preston had a strong penalty shout in the 37th minute when Barton knocked Jermaine Beckford to the ground.
Beckford had an outstanding opportunity to level the scores early in the second period when he met a cross from Greg Cunningham, but the former Leeds United striker just could not keep his header down.
Burnley then hit the woodwork on two separate occasions in the 54th minute. First, Gray's instinctive strike rattled the bottom of the post, before George Boyd clipped the top of the crossbar during the same attack.
The second goal just would not come for Burnley as Scott Arfield's low strike narrowly missed the post 30 minutes from time, but Preston were a threat down the other end and Tom Heaton had to be at his best to keep out a strike from Daniel Johnson in the 69th minute.
It was the home side that looked the most likely to score the game's second goal late on, but Burnley held on to record a vital win and ensure that the pressure would be transferred to both Middlesbrough and Brighton this weekend. Preston, who can no longer reach the playoffs, remain down in 10th position on 58 points.
Matt Law
