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Laws planning for future with
Clarets Burnley manager Brian Laws is adamant he will be at the club next season as he already has plans in place for life in or out of the Barclays Premier League.

The Clarets have lost 13 of 16 matches since Laws' appointment in mid-January, and unsurprisingly it has prompted speculation he will be out in the summer - in particular if the club is relegated.

Burnley stand on the brink of a swift return to the Coca-Cola Championship ahead of Sunday's Turf Moor clash with Liverpool, but Laws does not see his reign coming to an end any time soon.

"The one thing we have to do is plan - short term, long term - and the one thing we are planning for right now is to stay in the Premier League," he said.

"You've also got to look at the other side, at what happens if we don't stay up.

"But we're not sitting around twiddling our thumbs. We're trying to do some planning, and what course we take depends on this weekend and next.

"Hopefully we won't know until after the last game of the season which would be great, the best feeling in the world, and I'd be delighted if that happens.

"Once we do know we'll be straight on it, and we'll work as quickly as possible to put practices in place." With Burnley's plight a precarious one, with every game now crucial, the players would likely look to their manager to present a cool, calm facade.

But Laws admits to being on edge, adding: "If you don't have nerves then there's a problem. You're not human.

"It's an emotional game. No-one is super human. Who can switch off just like that and say they don't feel pressure or nervous? "Of course you feel nervous, and you need an element of that to get the best out of yourself anyway.

"So nerves do come into it. Your stomach will be churning away, but that's the feeling you should have - it means you care, and myself and everybody at this football club cares." Defender Clarke Carlisle is likely to be out after turning his right ankle in training, but striker David Nugent should return after missing last weekend's defeat at Sunderland with a tight hamstring.

After a long and arduous trip to Madrid for a Europa League semi-final in the week Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez must turn his attention to a shorter journey equally fraught with problems.

His side head to struggling Burnley knowing their faint hopes of finishing fourth in the Barclays Premier League will be all but over if Tottenham have already beaten Manchester United at Old Trafford.

Their woeful domestic away record has largely contributed to that situation as they have won just four and lost eight of their 17 matches on the road.

Liverpool's last two trips this season are to Turf Moor and Hull on the final day but even victories there and also at home to Chelsea are probably not going to be enough to get them into the Champions League next season.

Benitez accepts their away form has been the major stumbling block to success this season and with a crucial Europa League semi-final second leg coming up on Thursday there is a danger his players will be too focused on that.

"We know our record away this year is not the best so we cannot go there thinking the job is done, we have to do it," said the Spaniard, whose only piece of good news this week was the reopening of British airspace which prevented another 1,200-mile return overland from Madrid.

"Always you have an opportunity to change this record and it is positive that we were able to return home (from Madrid) by plane because we were originally thinking about arriving late on Saturday evening.

"We will have some time when we can rest and be ready. We know it will be a massive game and we will try to do our best.

"Never is it easy to play away, especially against a team which is fighting relegation.

"We have confidence and hopefully we can play well, score goals and have more confidence for the second leg against Atletico.

"We have got to go there and claim three points." Liverpool returned from Madrid with another injury worry after striker David Ngog had to come off with a back problem in the second half against Atletico.

With star striker Fernando Torres out for the remainder of the campaign after a second knee operation and four defenders currently sidelined it leaves the squad looking a bit thin.

Burnley vs Liverpool

Last modified 22:19 25/04/10

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Just when Liverpool need him most, Steven Gerrard is finally looking more like his old irrepressible self.

Liverpool’s struggles this season have reflected Gerrard’s own unhappiness with his form.

The man who has single-­handedly dragged Liverpool to glory so many times over the last decade has been frustrated at his inability to halt the Reds’ slide towards mediocrity.

His 12 goals say it all about what an average season this has been for Gerrard compared to his superhuman standards.

But yesterday at Turf Moor he showed signs he could yet lead the Reds to a successful finale.

His double keeps alive ­Liverpool’s faint Champions League hopes and was the perfect lift going into Thursday’s Europa League semi-final return against Atletico Madrid.

The England star has got that determined look about him again and when he opened the scoring, he cupped his ear in response to the latest bout of scurrilous rumours doing the rounds about his private life.

By the time he scored his fantastic second goal, he gestured with his hands as if to say he’s the one doing the talking now. Rafa Benitez feels he can help fill the goalscoring void left by the injured Fernando Torres.

Liverpool are going to need the Gerrard of Olympiakos and Istanbul as they bid to overturn Atletico’s 1-0 ­advantage and reach the Europa League final.

“He has quality, power and accuracy so I’m really pleased for him and the team. It’s important when you don’t have players like Torres that you have a player like Steve,” said the Reds boss. Gerrard’s 52nd-minute opener, which was deflected in off Leon Cort, was tough on Burnley and turned the game Liverpool’s way.

That goal “knocked the stuffing out of us” according to boss Brian Laws and while that strike was fortunate, there was nothing lucky about his second.

When Alberto Aquilani slipped, Gerrard pounced on the loose ball 25 yards out and hit an ­unstoppable shot between Brian Jensen’s left hand and the post.

“Going down” sang the Liverpool fans. “Going bust” came the reply from the Burnley fans and although they have lost their Premier League status, they have retained their sense of humour.

They needed it in the final quarter when Steven Fletcher saw a 72nd-minute effort come off the post before Liverpool banged in two more to give the scoreline a ­flattering look.

Aquilani played a great ball through to Maxi Rodriguez who applied a cool finish for his first Liverpool goal. Lucas put Ryan Babel through and he slotted in to seal Liverpool’s first away league win in 2010.