Burgess joined Salford on a season-long loan from Scunthorpe United in July, after the club was promoted to League Two. Salford has enjoyed a fairytale run since it was bought by Ryan Giggs, the Neville brothers, Paul Scholes, Nicky Butt and David Beckham.
The former Manchester United greats took over in 2014 and in that period the Ammies have been promoted four times, reaching the Football League for the first time in their 79-year history in May this year. They have also pulled off some big upsets in the FA Cup and been the subject of a BBC television series.
Salford currently sit 11th in League Two, just three points below the playoff places. Burgess admits expectations are high at a club firmly ensconced in the spotlight.
“It’s pretty ambitious, to be fair,” he told The World Game.
“It’s high standards, especially on the field with the people off it who are involved, from all angles to the coaches, the director of football, the directors and all things like that.
“It’s a pretty well-run club that is very ambitious, as you can see from the outside, and it’s all about getting the results and getting the club where the fans and the directors want us to be.
“You can see where they [the Class of '92] want to go. They’ve been successful so quickly that it’s all going to catch up. It is really exciting times for the club.
“You can see with the little changes that day-in-day-out they’re trying to improve on, where can they go next on and off the pitch. It is pretty cool to be involved in.”
Burgess didn’t get on the field in the first seven matches of the season, but has been a mainstay since the 2-0 loss to Cheltenham Town in September, playing the past 10 games in a row. The towering centre-back has scored twice in the past two league goals, finding the back of the net against parent club Scunthorpe and Newport County.
“It’s been good. It’s been a case of moving across, getting used to a few things, the way they want us to play, and biding my time really,” he explained.
“We got some decent results towards the start of the season, I’ve made my way into the team and it’s been good since then. The gaffer here, he’s the one that signed me at Scunthorpe.
“I always had a relationship with him anyway and they happened to be in the market for a centre-half and at that time at Scunthorpe they wanted to rejig a few things after being relegated. I was given the chance to come on loan here and work with a manager I’ve worked with before.
“You know what’s expected of you when you come in, you know the bare minimum expected and he knows what I have to offer. So it was a pretty smooth transition in terms of on the field.
“There’s a lot of competition. I didn’t get in the team straight away, as I was just moving across and getting settled.
“But obviously once you get your shirt you want to keep it, it’s highly competitive and that’s what it’s all about at the end of the day. If I can help the team with a couple of goals here and there then it’s all good.
“Also trying to get some wins, that’s the important one, and trying to climb the table.”
Phil Neville, Gary Neville, Butt, Scholes, Giggs and Beckham all own a 10% stake each of the Ammies, with the remaining 40% owned by Valencia CF owner Peter Lim.
Burgess says he has yet to meet the group of ex-Red Devils in person, but their presence and high expectations of the club remains noticeable at Moor Lane.
“They’ve got other jobs on the weekend, they’re either coaches or pundits, so they don’t get too much chance to come along,” the former Olyroo said.
“But they’ve got people in place who do, who are there all the time. They’ve got people in place like Chris Casper, he’s the director of football.
“They’ve got a really good relationship so I don’t think they actually have to be there as much.
“It’s kind of a weird one as you’d think with them having a football background they’d be there all the time, but it’s not the case, as they are the owners.
“At a normal football club you’d never see the owners. They obviously want us to do well, they’re always paying attention and keeping an eye on us and all the rest of it, but with other jobs it’s hard for them to be there all the time.”
The Class of '92 have set heady goals for Salford, with a target of reaching the Championship by 2029. Burgess isn’t ruling out another push at going up this season.
“There’s got to be some kind of stabilising at some point because it’s hard to go and get back-to-back promotions every year,” the 24-year-old said.
“But at the same time it’s a weird one as it’s a small club at it’s highest level, and that will always be remembered and for the next couple of seasons, but here it’s kind of – we’ve done that, what’s next?
“It doesn’t really get spoken about, look what we’ve achieved. It’s more: what can we achieve next? That’s the attitude around the place so it’s quite good.”
