Tarky will learn from suspension - Mee

Stand in skipper Ben Mee feels James Tarkowski will learn from an impulsive moment which has led to a theee-match suspension.
Ben MeeBen Mee
Ben Mee

Tarkowski was found guilt of violent conduct after being charged by the FA following an off the ball incident involving Brighton’s Glenn Murray during Saturday’s goalless draw at the Amex Stadium.

He has started every game so far this season, but his run will come to an end as he misses the games with Spurs, Manchester United and Huddersfield Town.

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It is the first ban a Burnley player has picked up so far this season, with Sean Dyche’s side priding themselves on their discipline, and Mee said: “It’s unfortunate, you can't get away with anything with the cameras around.

”He's disappointed obviously but it's one of those things just in the heat of the moment and he'll improve from it, making a little bit of a misjudgement and he'll learn from it.

“The scrutiny is massive and the amount of times things get replayed you know it's going to come back and bite you if you do step out of line, so you're definitely aware of it you've just got to keep your head and be aware of your actions.“

Kevin Long will come in for Tarkowski, having held keep two clean sheets in deputising for Mee against Watford and Stoke City, and Mee has no worries about a new defensive partner: “The boys coming in know their jobs and are ready to come in and fill the gaps and the lads that have come in have been fantastic.”

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Burnley go into Saturday’s game with Spurs a point and a place above their much-vaunted opponents, and Mee is thrilled with how the first half of the season has gone: “It’s a fantastic thing to be in a situation like this but we're not getting carried away.

”It's something we're thriving on and really want to see where can go and how high we can finish.

“It’s a really tough run, but we've done well against the big clubs this season so we're not dreading it, we're not fearful, it will be an exciting couple of weeks for us to be playing against the biggest teams in the league so it's a tough run but we'll relish it.

“Saturday is going to be a big test, but we've shown our qualities through the first half of the season and we'll need to do it again for sure. We will find out about ourselves once again.”

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Burnley have already come from behind to earn a 1-1 draw with Spurs at Wembley in August, and Mee admits the result gave the players confidence: “It set us up really well for the early part of the season. Places like Wembley give us a big boost of confidence and we carried on with that sort of form.

”They (Spurs) have got some fantastic footballers and some good English talent which is good to see in the way they play the game, they're organised and a very fit side so it's going to be a tough ask and a good game to test ourselves.”

And Mee, of course, will be up against the top English striker of the moment in Harry Kane.

Mee is a fan: “He's one of the best in the league at scoring and creating things, his all round play is improving every year.

”He's become a really fantastic player and it's good to see an Englishman with that kind of talent. It's good to test ourselves against that kind of player.”