Laws vows to build on Coyle legacy at Burnley

Brian Laws started work as manager of Burnley on Wednesday with a pledge to build on the achievements of his predecessor Owen Coyle.

The former Sheffield Wednesday boss was a surprise choice to take charge of the Premier League side but he insisted he could win over supporters who are sceptical of his ability to keep the Lancashire club in the top flight.

“The board believe they have made the right decision and so do I,” Laws said. “All I can say to the supporters is that they will get my full commitment.”

Laws, a former Burnley player who was sacked by Wednesday last month, fills a vacancy created by Coyle’s decision to move to local Premier League rivals Bolton.

Laws, 48, beat off competition from Doncaster manager Sean O’Driscoll to secure a two-and-a-half-year contract at Turf Moor, where he will be joined by his former Wednesday assistant Russ Wilcox.

The pair left Wednesday last month after the club dropped into the relegation zone of the second-tier Championship.

Graham Alexander, 38, the Burnley club captain, will become part of the new management team after being handed a role as a player-coach.

Laws takes over at a club facing a struggle to survive in the Premier League in its first season back in English football’s top flight since 1976.

The club, currently 14th in the table but only two points above the relegation zone, has the smallest budget of any club in the division, a fact which influenced Coyle’s decision to move to Bolton.

Laws faces a tough task in attempting to build on the foundations laid by Coyle, starting with a daunting trip to champions Manchester United on Saturday.

But the club’s directors believe they have found the right man for the job.

“We believe Brian will deliver a continuity of the culture to which Burnley fans and staff have become accustomed,” they said in a statement. “As a former Burnley defender, he is especially familiar with the club, the traditions we have and the passion we all share.”

The statement also underlined that Laws had proved he could operate effectively with limited finances.

“The Burnley board have been particularly impressed by the way Brian consistently achieved relative success in his former post at Sheffield Wednesday, while operating with one of the lowest wage and transfer budgets in the Championship.

“The results of a Deloitte and Touche study, delivered at the club’s request, confirm that he was top of the list of Championship managers over the period 2006-2009, in terms of delivering the best results relative to financial budgets.”

Under Coyle, Burnley earned a reputation for playing an open, passing game which some argue made them vulnerable away from Turf Moor.

Laws hinted that a more guarded approach might be on the cards under his leadership.

“I just think we can tinker with it and sometimes fresh ideas will help support the players and give them license to express themselves but maybe be a bit tighter away from home,” he said.

Laws added: “I like to play good football. There’s good players here and they like to play football. It’s a marriage made to work.

“I’m not going to be changing anything – there’s no broken wheel here as far as I’m concerned. We’ll add one or two bits but we want to tick over what Owen has done and just add a little bit more.”