Match ends, Burnley 1, Southampton 0.
Substitute Joey Barton scored the second-half winner on his league return for Burnley, who saw off Southampton in a tight contest at Turf Moor.
The 34-year-old had only been on the field for five minutes when he fired in a low 25-yard free-kick which took a deflection before beating keeper Fraser Forster.
Southampton were the bigger threat for most of the match, and the Clarets also had Tom Heaton to thank for their eighth home league win of the season.
The England keeper had to be alert to pat down James Ward-Prowse's first-half header, and then in the closing moments made two outstanding one-handed saves to deny ex-Claret Jay Rodriguez and Josh Sims.
For Saints, who slip to 13th, it was fourth consecutive loss in the Premier League; Burnley climb to 10th after a third win in four.
Burnley rely on rearguard
Burnley could be considered lucky to come away with all three points. They were weak in attack and had three shots on target in the entire match, with only Barton's deflected strike troubling Forster.
Without the disciplined defending and brilliant keeping of Heaton, Southampton might have ended their streak of three matches without a win.
Defender Ben Mee was on hand to clear off the line from Dusan Tadic and Jeff Hendrick placed his body in front of a fierce Shane Long effort that appeared goalbound.
And when the backline was beaten, Heaton was a brick wall as the last man. He reacted quickly to block Ward-Prowse's header before making two superb diving stops to prevent Rodriguez and then Sims, with the follow-up, from equalising. The second save was truly exceptional.
With 24 points from a possible 36 at home, Burnley are 10 points clear of the bottom three and appear a good bet to avoid a relegation battle.
Positive signs for Saints
Southampton fans should not be too disheartened by the result.
Four league defeats in four makes for bad reading, but there was little to fault in the display at Turf Moor.
They were competent in defence and a handful in attack, with Tadic, aside from the effort cleared by Mee, going close with an angled shot before Long's header rippled the side netting after the break.
And had Heaton switched off in the final few moments, visiting manager Claude Puel would have been heading back to Hampshire with a deserved point.
As it is, the Saints continue to head down the table. They will now focus on arresting this losing run at home to champions Leicester next Sunday.
'I want to repay Dyche'
Match-winner Barton - making his first Premier League start since May 2015 - said he wanted to prove to Burnley boss Dyche he made the correct decision in bringing the English midfielder back to Turf Moor.
Barton had been training with the Clarets after leaving Rangers in mid-November. He had his contract terminated by the Scottish Premiership club following a training-ground altercation in September and was given a one-match suspension for breaking Scottish Football Association rules on gambling.
He has also been charged with misconduct, with the English FA claiming the midfielder has placed 1,260 bets in the past 10 years.
"It was an incredible thing for him to bring me back - to what he did and the circus that goes on around me," said Barton.
"Hopefully displays in the coming weeks will repay that faith."
Man of the match - Tom Heaton (Burnley)
'We have a group that give every inch'
Burnley boss Sean Dyche:
"It's a good story with Barton today. He's worked hard since he came back. I know what Joey offers. He's had an interesting life and today was another strange twist in his interesting life.
"Every coach has a doubt but it's about conquering your doubts. He's only one player - we have a group of players here that give every inch.
"Southampton are a good side without a shadow of doubt.
"I thought the defensive unit in general was great. I praised Heaton on his focus and I praised him for keeping in the latter stages of the match."
Southampton boss Claude Puel:
"We wasted many chances and the keeper made strong saves.
"It was a strong game for us. There was a good attitude and it was a good display. It was difficult to play against the long ball today.
"We showed the same spirit as we had showed in recent games. It was incredible to lose this game.
"It's important to continue this good work."
Saints' Turf Moor run continues - the stats
- Burnley have won four consecutive home Premier League games for only the second time, after the won each of their first four home games ever in the competition back in 2009-10.
- Southampton have not won any of their past four league visits to Burnley, last beating them there in the Championship in October 2007.
- Dyche's side have won six of their past seven home league games (L1).
- Southampton have failed to find the back of the net in four of their past five Premier League away games
- Saints' Premier League games this season have produced a league-low 17 first-half goals (eight for, nine against).
- Barton scored his first Premier League goal since April 2015 (for QPR v West Brom).
What's next?
Burnley have an FA Cup third-round replay against Sunderland on Tuesday and are then at Arsenal next Sunday (14:15 GMT). Southampton are at home to Norwich in their FA Cup third-round replay on Wednesday and follow that up with Sunday's midday kick-off against Leicester.
Line-ups
Burnley
Formation 4-4-2
- 1Heaton
- 2Lowton
- 5Keane
- 6Mee
- 23Ward
- 21Boyd
- 8MarneyBooked at 50minsSubstituted forBartonat 73'minutes
- 13Hendrick
- 16DefourSubstituted forVokesat 74'minutes
- 10Barnes
- 7GraySubstituted forTarkowskiat 87'minutes
Substitutes
- 4Flanagan
- 9Vokes
- 11Kightly
- 17Robinson
- 19Barton
- 26Tarkowski
- 27Darikwa
Southampton
Formation 4-3-3
- 1Forster
- 2Cédric Soares
- 3YoshidaBooked at 23mins
- 17van Dijk
- 21Bertrand
- 23Højbjerg
- 14RomeuBooked at 68mins
- 16Ward-Prowse
- 22RedmondSubstituted forSimsat 80'minutes
- 7Long
- 11TadicSubstituted forRodríguezat 68'minutes
Substitutes
- 4Clasie
- 9Rodríguez
- 15Martina
- 18Reed
- 24Stephens
- 28Taylor
- 39Sims
- Referee:
- Paul Tierney
- Attendance:
- 20,254
Match Stats
- Possession
- Home41%
- Away59%
- Shots
- Home9
- Away20
- Shots on Target
- Home3
- Away5
- Corners
- Home2
- Away7
- Fouls
- Home14
- Away14
Live Text
Post update
Full Time
Second Half ends, Burnley 1, Southampton 0.
Post update
Attempt missed. Virgil van Dijk (Southampton) right footed shot from outside the box misses to the left. Assisted by Josh Sims with a headed pass.
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Attempt blocked. Sam Vokes (Burnley) right footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked. Assisted by George Boyd.
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Attempt saved. Josh Sims (Southampton) right footed shot from a difficult angle on the right is saved in the bottom right corner.
Post update
Attempt saved. Jay Rodriguez (Southampton) right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the bottom right corner. Assisted by Virgil van Dijk with a headed pass.
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Maya Yoshida (Southampton) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
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Foul by Sam Vokes (Burnley).
Post update
Attempt saved. Virgil van Dijk (Southampton) header from the centre of the box is saved in the top centre of the goal. Assisted by James Ward-Prowse with a cross.
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Corner, Southampton. Conceded by George Boyd.
Substitution
Substitution, Burnley. James Tarkowski replaces Andre Gray.
Post update
Attempt missed. Sam Vokes (Burnley) right footed shot from outside the box is too high. Assisted by Andre Gray following a set piece situation.
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Foul by Shane Long (Southampton).
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Joey Barton (Burnley) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
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Shane Long (Southampton) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
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Foul by Matthew Lowton (Burnley).
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Attempt saved. Ryan Bertrand (Southampton) left footed shot from outside the box is saved in the bottom left corner.
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Attempt missed. Jay Rodriguez (Southampton) header from the centre of the box misses to the left. Assisted by Cédric Soares with a cross.
Substitution
Substitution, Southampton. Josh Sims replaces Nathan Redmond.
Post update
Ryan Bertrand (Southampton) wins a free kick on the left wing.
Comments
Join the conversation
Comedians.
Barton is not playing in the worlds best league, so Barton won in the end.
Well done Burnley, great home record, [from a Palace fan] by the way.
So well done.
From a lifelong claret.
He is now unbeaten in 24 league games with the club.
Astonishing drive, hunger, dedication (at times causing frustration with team mates but no chance of that at Burnley given the standards Dyche sets).
It was always going to pay off, but most of us didn't think within 2 minutes.
I don't think you can consider a club that can't even afford a £40,000 debt a big club.
There's maybe 45k fans in the stands, but Rangers are now a small club in every other sense of the word. The new club is in real financial trouble and doesn't have the money to finish the season.
Rangers' ambitions are also of mediocrity. The ambition to finish 2nd ahead of Aberdeen.
Topped off with a nice bit of anger management from Joey ⚽️🐅
You don't know where Burnley is and can name no players other than Barton , yet you're on a football message board commenting on them ? Hilarious !