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"Burnley have shown already that they are a very dangerous side, especially at home," Bruce said. "They've beaten Everton and Manchester United and that speaks volumes about what they're capable of. If those two clubs can come unstuck at Burnley, then so can we.
"I've got huge respect for them in the first place, for managing to get out of the Championship on such a small budget last season. It was a magnificent achievement and everyone at that club deserves every credit.
"In a way it is not the best time for us to be playing them right now. Ideally you want to be playing a team that has just come up later in the season when injuries and suspensions start to hurt and fatigue begins to settle in.
"But at the moment Burnley are still in that first flush where they are new to the division and are giving it absolutely everything in front of their own fans."
Bruce believes Burnley can have similar success to that experienced by Wigan, Hull and Stoke in recent years but accepts they have a different approach to the game. He said: "Burnley are a very good footballing team. They like to get the ball down and try to pass it through you.
"They've got some very decent players. They might not be household names, but any team which can turn over the clubs they have done deserves respect. They will present a different sort of challenge to the ones we faced in games so far to teams like Blackburn, Bolton and Stoke City. We will still have to match their strengths and, of course, their commitment if we are to do well down there.
"I think that a small, compact ground, full of passionate support, will be one of their biggest assets. It is a special achievement in getting to the Premier League on the resources they have and I'm pleased for them."
But these are the teams you have got to do well against if you are hoping to in the top half of the table as we are. We know what to expect but I think there's a growing feeling among us that the squad is gradually knitting together.
"Burnley will know they're going to be in a game and if we show the same attitude as we have of late, then it will be a good game."
Having suffered the two defeats on the road to Chelsea and Liverpool has only confirmed just how tough this league is and there's no doubt that it will be a difficult task just staying up.
"If we do manage to retain our Premier League status then I think, no doubt, it will be ten times the achievement of actually getting into the league because of the imbalance in terms of finance and everything else," Coyle said today.
"Financially we are nowhere near anyone else in the league in terms of budget for salaries and indeed in terms of expenditure. I would suggest when you put all that together we are probably half our nearest rivals.
"It shows in terms of finance it's a mis-match but we've disproved that theory in that we can still put a team on the pitch in the Premier League that can win games within all those things that go against us.
"That's all credit to the players and, as I've said before, the fans have also played an integral part and we will need them again on Saturday. We know when the place is rocking then it really is conducive to a fantastic football experience and we have to make sure we get the points on the back of it. We know that when we bring it all together we can win games in the Premier League."
Coyle continued: "As much as people perceived we had a very difficult start with the five matches we have had, then Sunderland is not any less a game. In the form they are in they are looking to cement their place in the top end of the league and we are looking to take three points to take us onto nine after six games which would be a great start.
"We are delighted to be back at home. It's important that we keep up that tremendous home record we've got. That's what we are looking forward to, getting back to Turf Moor and getting to the standards we've set here previously.
"We know it will be a tough game and in many people's eyes Sunderland will be the favourites and I can't argue with that. But what I do know is my players will be ready to give everything they can to try and get those three points and show everybody we are a decent team.
"If at the outset somebody said you would have six points from those first five games then I think it's fair to say we would have been delighted with that. As it is we had those six points after three games so there's a little tinge of disappointment to add to that but no doubt if we were offered six we would have taken it.
"A lot of people would have thought we would be tailed off after five games and not be in the mix but we've shown we are in there and we are going to scrap and fight for every point that comes our way."