OUT of nothing, Turf Moor had been sent into delirium. A header out of defence returned with interest by a guided missile, just like in 2009. In George Boyd, Burnley had found their new Robbie Blake.

Blake was the man who could achieve the impossible. He was Bad Beat Bob, the Clarets superhero who often put his underpants on display and was able to produce the sort of goal that the average Burnley player was just not capable of.

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His volleyed winner against Manchester United was the iconic moment not just of his time at Turf Moor but of an entire era for Burnley Football Club. A 22-year journey from Ian Britton’s winner against Orient in 1987, to THAT goal against United.

When Blake’s superpowers waned, so did Burnley’s hopes.

He lost his place in the side as the Clarets disintegrated horribly at the end of that 2009/10 season.

He was substituted at the interval - along with Kevin McDonald, infamously - on a horrible rain-drenched evening when Manchester City raced into a 5-0 half-time lead on the way to a 6-1 win, the nadir of that campaign.

The Clarets have had a number of fine players since Blake’s departure, but few goals that have been iconic in quite the same way - Danny Ings at Ewood Park excepted, for very different reasons.

Boyd was the first to take Burnley back to those impossible days when they could beat the giants of the English game, the Premier League champions no less. It was a goal eerily reminiscent of Blake’s.

Boyd characteristically celebrated by darting off at great speed. Burnley’s Marathon Man has superpowers of his own, as the man who never stops, the man proven by statistics to cover more distance than any other Premier League player.

He can certainly play a bit too.

Manchester City face Barcelona at the Nou Camp on Wednesday but even Lionel Messi, Neymar and Luis Suarez will struggle to match the goal that Boyd put past them at Turf Moor.

City will probably just be glad to be playing anyone other than Burnley, after dropping five points against the Clarets this season.

The only Manchester City fan with anything to cheer was the man who took to the pitch at half time to propose to his Burnley-supporting girlfriend.

“You don’t know what you’re doing,” sang the Clarets fans when she said yes.

Such was the way Burnley performed on Saturday that one journalist got the two teams confused and accidentally asked Sean Dyche whether the win would boost the Clarets’ title fight.

“Title fight?! Get in there! You beauty!” Dyche exclaimed as he punched the air, jokingly delighted that his side suddenly had a chance of winning the league.

It was that sort of euphoric night.

Burnley looked like they had given up hope of avoiding the drop when they lost 6-1 to City five years ago. Now belief has never been stronger.

Dyche played down descriptions of a historic win, keen to keep his players focused on the survival task in hand.

But this indeed was a little part of Burnley history. Just like Blake in 2009, Boyd had made the impossible a reality once more.