Mike Jackson remains focused on Burnley’s relegation battle

Mike Jackson could keep Burnley in the Premier League on Sunday but might be looking for a new job tomorrow.

Jackson has been kept in the dark about where his future lies after being promoted from U23s coach to interim manager following the controversial decision by Clarets chairman Alan Pace to sack Sean Dyche with just eight games left in the season.

With previous managerial experience at Shrewsbury and Tranmere, Jackson has won three, drawn two and lost two of his seven games in charge so to lift the club out of the bottom three.

Mike Jackson’s future is hanging in the balance ahead of Burnley’s game with Newcastle

They go into Sunday’s home clash with to Newcastle knowing that thanks to a vastly superior goal difference they ‘only’ need to match Leeds’ result at Brentford but even if they stay up Jackson, 49, has so far held no discussions about his future with Pace.

‘We’ve not spoken about it, ‘ he said. ‘We’ve not had time to even think about that. There’s been no looking at what I’m going to be doing next and what’s going to be happening, my full focus has been on trying to achieve [Premier League] survival.

‘Fingers crossed, everything goes how we want it to happen and we’ll have a good Monday! But I don’ t know what I’ll be doing .. I’ll let you know!’

Jackson was promoted from U23s coach to interim manager after Sean Dyche was sacked

Asked if he wants the job on a permanent basis if the Clarets stay up he replied: ‘I’ve not even thought about that. All my thoughts have been on how we can achieve what we want to do.’

He revealed that Dyche – who was the Premier League’s longest-serving boss until his dismissal – has been in touch with his support for Jackson and his players.

‘He’s texted me after games but I don’t want to go into that too much,’ he added. ‘I’m sure he’ll be sending his best wishes to the group as well.’

Depending on how Leeds fare, Burnley are in the odd situation where a draw could send them down, but a defeat could keep them up.

As it stands, Jackson has won three, drawn two and lost two of his seven games in charge

Jackson says that he and his coaching staff will make sure they are well aware of the Leeds scoreline but insists the best way to approach the game is to try and win it rather than rely on Brentford doing them a favour.

‘You have go to just try and win your game,’ he said. ‘We know there’s going to be a lot of emotion around but it’s about reminding the players to keep their focus on what we are doing.

‘If you start thinking about other things you can get too carried away. You’ve got to keep the intensity levels right, not too high, not too low. If it’s too high you can’t play anyway, so we’ll try to get the balance right.’