BURNLEY goalkeeper Nick Pope still believes in the magic of the FA Cup and the Clarets stopper is targeting a run all the way to Wembley this season.

Pope, a £1million summer signing from Charlton, knows he isn’t going to see much league action this term with Tom Heaton firmly established as Burnley’s No.1 and Paul Robinson providing cover.

But the 24-year-old has his sights set on a showpiece cup final instead.

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The goalless draw at Sunderland in the third round on Saturday was just his second start for Burnley, following the EFL Cup defeat to Accrington Stanley in August, and he is set for a third when the Black Cats visit Turf Moor a week today.

“It means the world,” Pope said of his involvement on third round day.

“Obviously when you’re growing up you watch these games. The FA Cup final is always the game that everybody watches every year. It’s a big finale at Wembley so to be involved in this competition is massive. It’s world renowned.

“I want an FA Cup run and to go all the way to the final.

“I just want to keep improving. I’m training day in day out so when I get the chance to play games I’ll try to play well and keep a clean sheet. I just want to progress.”

There may not have been a great deal of cup romance on show at the Stadium of Light, but Pope’s boyhood club Ipswich Town were involved in one of the few ties to stir memories of cup classic from yesteryear, as they were held to a 2-2 draw by non-league Lincoln City.

It’s a competition that Pope is delighted to be playing in.

“I remember one of the first finals that I watched was when Di Matteo scored for Chelsea against Boro,” he said of the 1997 final.

“That’s the one that I can think furthest back to. From then you always get the bug as a kid and that just makes you thrive.”

There may have been more than four months between Pope’s two Burnley starts but both have ended with a clean sheet after 90 minutes, with the only goal he has conceded being Matty Pearson’s 120th minute winner for Stanley.

“As a goalkeeper the aim in every game is to keep a clean sheet,” he added. “To do that over two 90 minutes in a row is good for me. It gives me a lot of confidence.

“The lads in front of me helped me settle down well so from the start I felt really comfortable. That was really helpful for me.”

Pope may be limited to cup action at the moment but he feels he has improved since his summer move from League One side Charlton.

“I feel that I’ve developed a lot,” he said. “Training every day is sharper and for myself I’m doing a lot of gym work as well. I’m just pushing myself. I feel I’ve progressed a lot over the first six months and I’ve enjoyed it a lot as well.

“I noticed it was a higher intensity coming here from Charlton. That’s what we try and do on the pitch as well so it’s good to do that in training. It’s definitely helped me to improve being around that every day.”