The Premier League's 2017-18 surprise package Burnley play host to Arsenal on Sunday and they head into the match level on points with the Gunners.

Sean Dyche's Clarets lie in seventh in the table after an impressive start to the campaign, while the Gunners are one place above them on goal difference.

Burnley

Burnley head into this fixture in a rich vein of form, having won three consecutive top-flight games for the first time since 1975.

Last time out, goals from Jack Cork and Ashley Barnes helped them to a 2-0 victory over Swansea City at Turf Moor, a result which saw them cling on to seventh place in the division.

The Clarets' defence has been notoriously tough to unpick this season, with Dyche's side having kept clean sheets in six of their last nine league matches, including the last three on the bounce.

However, they have also found goals difficult to come by at Turf Moor, a stadium which has seen seven goals in the six league matches it has hosted so far, fewer than any other ground in the Premier League this term.

Consistency has been the key to Dyche's success this season, not just where the form guide is concerned, but also in terms of his team selection.

The 46-year-old coach has stuck to his guns more often than any other top-flight manager this campaign, making just nine changes to his starting XI and using a Premier League low of 17 players.

Those players have been doing the business so far, and a win against Arsenal will put them just two victories shy of their all-time longest winning streak in the top flight, which dates back to 1968 when they defeated six teams on the bounce.

Recent form: WDLWWW

Arsenal

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has spent much of the early portion of the season under fire, with sections of the club's support firm in their belief that it is time for a change of management.

The Frenchman, however, eased some of that pressure with a 2-0 victory over local rivals Tottenham Hotspur in the Gunners' most recent Premier League fixture.

Since then, Arsenal went down 1-0 to Bundesliga basement boys FC Koln in their Europa League fixture in Germany, but remain on course to top their group in the competition.

On the domestic front, the Gunners have been poor on the road this season, taking just four points from six matches. Only West Ham United, Everton and Crystal Palace have a poorer record than that.

Two players have proven talismanic for them - Alexis Sanchez and Alexandre Lacazette, with Arsenal having won all five matches that the front pair have started.

Wenger is expected to encourage his side to play plenty of crosses into the box at Turf Moor as scoring from headers is their specialty.

A total of 24 of their goal haul this term has been through this method, the highest in the division.

Recent form: WLWWLW
Recent form (all competitions): LWWLWL

Team News

Burnley are expected to welcome back striker Chris Wood for the Arsenal match.

The former Leeds United forward missed the win against Swansea through fatigue, the result of being on international duty with New Zealand for their World Cup qualifying double-header against Peru.

Dyche is otherwise expected to stick with the same XI which defeated the Swans, with Jon Walters and Dean Marney his only absentees.

Gunners boss Wenger is likely to make wholesale changes from the experimental side which lost to Koln, with Sanchez and Lacazette leading the line.

Danny Welbeck, however, is pushing for game time after featuring as a substitute in Germany.

Shkodran Mustafi is expected to retain his place at the back after returning to fitness for last weekend's London derby against Spurs and impressing during the match.

Burnley possible starting lineup:
Pope; Lowton, Tarkowski, Mee, Ward; Gudmundsson, Cork, Hendrick, Defour, Brady; Wood

Arsenal possible starting lineup:
Cech; Koscielny, Mustafi, Monreal; Bellerin, Ramsey, Xhaka, Kolasinac; Ozil, Sanchez, Lacazette

Head To Head

Burnley are winless in nine league matches against Arsenal, a run of form which dates back to 1974, although they did knock them out of the League Cup in December 2008.

Premier League meetings between these two sides are rarely high-scoring affairs, with four goals having been scored in the three fixtures that have been contested, Burnley's only one coming in a 1-1 draw in 2009.

Arsenal got the double over the Clarets last season and both of those matches were decided by last-minute winners.

We say: Arsenal 0-0 Burnley

Burnley will prove a tough test for Arsenal and are likely to push them all the way, but their shyness in front of goal at Turf Moor could come into play against a top-six rival.

Having Wood back is a big boost to Dyche's attack, but after New Zealand's World Cup disappointment, he may need a game or two to return to goalscoring form.

Arsenal will be looking to attack their opponents and consolidate their position among the Premier League's chasing pack, but Burnley's watertight defence will be up for the challenge posed by Sanchez and Lacazette - just about.