Nottingham Forest will face a searching examination of their early season form when they launch a fresh bid for a place in the Premier League against Burnley on the opening day of the season.
They take on the relegated Clarets at Turf Moor and manager Brian Laws has instilled a belief in his new-look squad that they can bounce straight back into the Premiership at the first time of asking.
He has strengthened his hand with a handful of signings and there has been a buoyant mood in the Burnley ranks during a largely successful pre-season campaign that ended with a 2-1 home defeat by Stoke City last Saturday.
Results-wise Forest's pre-season could have gone better but Billy Davies has insisted all along that his players will be judged by what they produce from Saturday onwards.
Team News:
Ryan Bertrand is set for his Forest debut following his loan signing from Chelsea on Thursday.
The 21 year old defender is likely to go straight into the side and solve Forest's problem left back spot.
Forest have had a series of minor injury worries to deal with in the build-up to the new season but they are hoping that key defenders
Wes Morgan and
Kelvin Wilson, skipper
Paul McKenna, striker
Dexter Blackstock and winger
Paul Anderson will all be fit for the trip to Lancashire.
Laws has to decide which of his signings will make their debuts.
He has signed striker Chris Iwelumo from Wolves, goalkeeper Lee Grant from his former club Sheffield Wednesday, winger Ross Wallace from Preston and midfielder Dean Marney from Hull.
One of his major selection decisions will be to decide on his first choice goalkeeper with Grant competing with Brian 'The Beast' Jensen.
The only significant departure at Turf Moor during the summer was highly-rated striker Steven Fletcher for an undisclosed fee that matched the outlay for Kevin Doyle.
Form guide Burnley (Premier League): Hull City (a) W 4-1
Sunderland (a) L 1-2
Liverpool (h) L 0-4
Birmingham (a) L1-2
Tottenham (h)W4-2
Forest:
Blackpool (h)L3-4
Blackpool (a)L1-2
Scunthorpe (a)D2-2
Plymouth (h)W3-0
Blackpool (a)L1-3
Past meetings:
Burnley have had the better of recent meetings between the sides, winning three out of the last four clashes.
That included a 5-0 romp at Turf Moor the last time the sides met in March 2009 when former Forest striker Robbie Blake scored the opening goal, which was followed by strikes from Wade Elliott, Clarke Carlisle, Jay Rodriguez and Joey Gudjonsson.
In all the teams have met on 96 occasions with Burnley winning 36 to Forest's 35.
Connections: Burnley boss Brian Laws had the best time of his football career at
The City Ground between 1988-94.
He was signed from Middlesbrough and in six seasons with Forest he was a League Cup winner twice, played in another League Cup final and was an FA Cup runner-up in 1991.
Now the Wallsend Boys Club product is back where his professional football career started as a promising right back with Burnley, where he played 125 league games between 1979-83.
