Burnley's bleak opening to the campaign under manager Nicky Hayen persisted, but Bristol City managed to turn the tide in the dying minutes, clinching a 2-1 win in a highly charged atmosphere at Turf Moor. The home side appeared poised to finally break their winless streak when Aaron Ramsey struck in the 56th minute, giving the Clarets a much‑needed lead. However, City responded late on, with defender Rob Dickie heading equaliser from a corner in the 82nd minute. The drama was not over, as substitute Yu Hirakawa unleashed a powerful low drive from the edge of the box during stoppage time, sealing a dramatic comeback and delivering Michael Skubala’s side their third consecutive triumph, propelling them into the top four of the Championship.
The disappointment was palpable among the Burnley faithful, who quickly directed their frustration at club owner Alan Pace. The loss left the Clarets with only two points from five games under the Belgian coach, anchoring them at the bottom of the second tier just months after their relegation from the Premier League. In terms of personnel, Burnley introduced Japanese midfielder Reo Hatate on his debut after his deadline‑day transfer from Celtic, while veteran Kyle Walker returned to the starting eleven. New signing defender Igor Julio, who arrived from Brighton earlier in the week, was named on the bench.
For Bristol City, summer acquisition Gibson Yah earned his first start, whereas recent arrival Brian De Keersmaecker was deemed not yet ready for action. The visitors pressed early, with Rio Cardines delivering a free‑kick into the danger area that was cleared by Walker, only for Jason Knight to linger nearby. The match’s first notable chance came in the eighth minute when Ramsey headed a corner high over the bar.
Throughout the first half, City appeared the more confident side; Lorent Tolaj unleashed a powerful low shot that glanced wide just before the 30‑minute mark. Later, Jed Wallace produced a brilliant strike from the edge of the box, aiming for the top corner, but Burnley keeper Max Weiss tipped it onto the crossbar. From the resulting corner, Scott Twine headed over, as the Robins continued to apply pressure.
Ramsey attempted another effort before the break, again shooting high over the bar, while a section of the Burnley crowd voiced their displeasure with boos as the teams headed into halftime. Hayen made tactical changes at the start of the second half, bringing on Anel Ahmedhodzic and Armando Broja for Andreas Hountondji and Hjalmar Ekdal. The substitutions injected fresh energy and helped Burnley regain some momentum. The breakthrough finally arrived in the 56th minute when Hatate, positioned on the edge of the box, was fed a perfectly weighted pass by Max Alleyne.
Ramsey arrived late but managed to fire a ferocious 15‑yard strike past Sam Tickle, giving Burnley a 1‑0 lead. City, however, refused to surrender. They began to dominate the closing stages, and in the 82nd minute Dickie rose highest from Cardines’ corner to head the ball home, restoring parity.
The tension escalated as the clock ticked towards full‑time. In stoppage time, a corner was swung into the box, finding Hirakawa, who struck a low, precise shot from about 25 yards out.
The ball rattled the net, sparking outrage among the home supporters and sealing a 2‑1 win for Bristol City. After the final whistle, Burnley manager Nicky Hayen addressed the crowd, acknowledging the fans’ frustration: "I completely understand the fans, they're frustrated and disappointed.
Of course, it's not nice to experience this, but I understand and I can accept it. The only thing we can do is keep on fighting back and showing resilience. There's a lack of confidence at the moment and also a lack of fitness.
We have players who didn't play a lot in 18 months, in 15 months, and they still need a few weeks to get to their top level. I would rather my team was ready today than tomorrow, but with all the signings that we did and even the players who were already here who didn't play for a long time, it takes time. I'm the last one who is actually asking for time, because I know how it goes in football and with results.
I didn't expect this start and for me it's frustrating because I can't give the fans what they deserve. But I'm not giving up. I have been in even more difficult situations and I turned it around and I'm 100 per cent sure when everyone sticks together that we can do it also. It takes until the international break when everyone will be 100 per cent ready in fitness and then we will be a really strong team, but you have to survive until then and at the moment we're in a really difficult situation." City manager Michael Skubala praised his side’s composure: "For me, it wasn't a smash and grab or anything like that.
I think we deserved to win it and it was great when we got it over the line. First half they didn't cause us too many problems. And after they scored we looked really good and the team that was in the ascendancy. When we got our goal, I thought we were the ones that could go on and win it and we did that.
It's early days, but it's really encouraging to see the team fight and play some good attacking football. It shows we've got a strong group that can win matches at this level." The result not only gave Bristol City three points but also reinforced their position among the promotion contenders, while Burnley must regroup quickly to avoid a prolonged slide down the table. The match served as a stark reminder of how quickly fortunes can change in the Championship, where a single moment—like Hirakawa's late strike—can rewrite the narrative of an entire season.