Little's star turn

"I don't know what Premier League managers are doing not buying Glen Little," he moaned.

"The sooner he is sold the better!"

But his comments did not impress Clarets boss Stan Ternent who heard that Warnock had claimed the 26-year-old was the difference between the two sides.

"Neil Warnock would say that," said Ternent who was unwilling to be drawn into another row with the man who he clashed with at the end of last season.

As for selling Little, Ternent and his chairman have repeatedly stressed that he is not for sale, the club has no need to sell him and they are determined to keep him at Turf Moor.

Ex-Blade Gareth Taylor and skipper for the day Paul Cook got the goals that earned Burnley the victory that took them back into the top six but, at the end of a traumatic week for the club, Ternent was keen to praise the collective spirit within his side.

After a minute's silence and with the club flag flying at half mast, the team once again responded well in the light of the tragic death of assistant manager Sam Ellis's son Tim last Monday.

"Considering what the players have been through the past few days, we were excellent," said Ternent.

"They all showed fantastic character.

"We have a few injuries but the players I put in did very well. Steve Davis had a little strain on the side of his knee so he couldn't play but it is not too serious and he should be okay for the weekend.

"We passed the ball well in the first half, we have just got to try and do it for longer periods.

"The first goal took a while to come but we kept plugging away. The first goal was first class and the second had a deflection after a good strike from Paul (Cook) but sometimes you need that rub of the green.

"I am just really happy for all the players because they have shown a lot of qualities with regard to what we have been through as a club."

But it was Little that Warnock picked out as the key man as he said: "He was super."

"Burnley are a solid side but they need Little. He makes a massive difference to them.

"I saw the match against Barnsley and it is just a shame for us that he is back from injury in time for this game."

Little certainly adds an extra dimension to the Clarets but it is worth noting that they did beat then league leaders Crystal Palace at Turf Moor when Little was restricted to just a few minutes at the end of a 1-0 win.

And while his absence for a number of games did prove costly with a run of four away defeats, it would not have been so serious had fellow creative talent Alan Moore not been missing at the same time.

Keeping Little fit and in form will be crucial to the Clarets promotion push but the collective spirit that manger Ternent and skipper Davis have spoken about in the last few days is even more important.

The manager himself showed that one for all mentality when he rushed from the technical area to confront Keith Curle after the Blades captain had grabbed young striker Dimitri Papadopoulos around the throat.

Get all of Burnleys match facts and reports...click here.