Burnley set lose stars on the cheap

Burnley boss Seam Dyche looks set to lose a number of his top players this summer

Burnley’s relegation from the Premier League last season was no surprise, as the Clarets were unwilling to risk their financial future by spending big to stay in the top-flight.

That left Sean Dyche managing a Championship squad in the Premier League.

Loss

Unfortunately for Dyche it seems his squad will be stripped of their best players this summer. Star striker and top scorer from last season Danny Ings has already agreed a move to Liverpool.

The 22-year-old will move as a free agent on July 1^st, but the Clarets will receive some compensation.

Depending on what reports you read that compensation could be as little as £4million this summer. The Clarets can cope with the loss of one player, even if it is for a very small fee compared to his actual market value.

The Clarets do not have many star players, but those who impressed last season look set to follow in Ings footsteps out of the Turf Moor exit door.

Burnley are about to lose full-back Kieran Trippier to Tottenham for just £3.5million. The 24-year-old was one of the Clarets most consistent performers in the last few campaigns and earned rave reviews for the club.

His attacking ability will be missed, as well as his defensive ability. With 16 assists in his last two campaigns he is very useful going forward.

Goalkeeper

Burnley ‘keeper Tom Heaton was another player who impressed immensely last season. The 29-year-olds form was that good he even earned a call-up to the England squad for the recent games against Republic of Ireland and Slovenia.

At times he kept the Clarets in games last season, as they struggled to find goals at the other end of the pitch. His impressive displays have obviously not gone unnoticed by Premier League clubs.

Everton, Aston Villa and Southampton are all being linked with a £2million move for the former-Cardiff City stopper. Losing their ‘keeper would once be a big blow to the Clarets chances of earning promotion back to the Premier League.

The mooted fee for a ‘keeper who was so impressive last season would also be disappointing. If he played for a bigger club then his price tag would be far bigger.

Budget

Burnley is a club that runs on a very small budget and probably always will be, despite their sojourns in the Premier League. They buy players for small fees and then develop them to sell on. That just seems to be a fact of life at Turf Moor.

However, they are currently paying the price of relegation. The fee they have, or in some cases will receive for their players is very small by Premier League standards, but they are no longer a top-flight club. Premier League clubs seem to be taking advantage of the Clarets and picking up players for bargain prices, which is going to leave their squad devoid of quality next season.

Promotion

Burnley boss Sean Dyche, who himself has been linked with an exit this summer, now has the challenge of attempting to mount another promotion campaign next season, without a number of the players who got the Clarets promoted in the first place.

The Clarets are currently odds of 9/2 to win promotion back to the top-flight next season, which means they are not highly-fancied by the bookmakers to gain instant promotion.

Burnley’s chances of promotion will depend on what players they can bring in with the amount of money they will receive from player sales.

Their chances of making it back up to the Premier League at the first attempt will also depend on Dyche’s future. He had been heavily linked with both the vacant Sunderland Newcastle jobs, but both clubs now have bosses, so it looks more likely that he will stay at Turf Moor.

Difficult

Once Burnley were relegated it was always going to be difficult for the Clarets to keep hold of their top performers from last season. It seems that they have been harvested for their best players. That means that Dyche will have to work with the players left over and whatever signing he can bring in this summer.

Bouncing straight back up to the Premier League was always going to be difficult for the Clarets, but losing the likes of Ings, Trippier and Heaton has only made promotion seem further away for the club from Lancashire.

Can Burnley gain promotion next season?