Burnley boss Vincent Kompany explains decision to take off substitute Zeki Amdouni against Brentford

The 23-year-old was brought on in the 69th minute as a replacement for Jacob Bruun Larsen during Saturday’s win against Brentford.

Burnley were leading 2-0 at the time, having just grabbed their second of the game through David Fofana.

But Kristoffer Ajer glanced a header home in the 83rd minute to set up a tense finish.

Despite being down to 10 men, Brentford put the home side under pressure late on, making for a nervy end to the affair at Turf Moor.

Heading into stoppage-time, Kompany opted to make another change, one that raised a few eyebrows among those watching as Amdouni was hauled off just 26 minutes after his introduction.

Josh Brownhill was the man to take his place in the side, while Amdouni headed back to the substitute’s bench looking understandably disappointed.

Explaining the decision, Kompany explained he didn’t want to give referee Darren Bond an excuse to level the numbers.

He said: “I told him he picked up a yellow and he makes a foul right in front of our box, so I’m thinking the last thing we need is to go down to 10 men and we’ve got Browny still there.

“It’s tough for him, but he’ll get on with it. He knows how much we love him and how much we appreciate his talent.

“It’s part of a career and he’ll have to dust himself off and go again.”