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Highlights
- Burnley’s move to sign a £50k-per-week Premier League talent has become ‘complicated’.
- It’s now been revealed how that could actually benefit Vincent Kompany’s men.
- Indeed, a late swoop for the ‘concerning’ midfielder would likely be a mistake.
In the short term, failure and bad decisions are often magnified to a much higher extent, whereas success is often only truly appreciated in the long run and with the benefit of hindsight.
For a newly-promoted Premier League side like Burnley, you are not afforded the benefit of hindsight and there is no room for error.
The squad has to become curated to the best of your abilities and incomings need to be logical, purposeful, and impactful.
The Clarets are certainly a team in this boat and their summer business has signalled their desire to retain their top-flight status.
Vincent Kompany’s men have already spent £78m and their recent £12m coup of Sander Berge from promotion rivals Sheffield United is indicative of their intent.
This signing looks to have defused the flame of the Albert Sambi-Lokonga rumours, which could be the best eventuality for both parties…
Are Burnley signing a new midfielder?
At the end of July, as per the Evening Standard, Burnley had been leading the race to sign Albert-Sambi Lokonga either on loan or as a permanent deal.
Kompany was said to be driving the interest in the young Belgian, who he worked with whilst he was in charge of Anderlecht.
However, it was recently reported by Sacha Tavolieri that Burnley didn’t meet the player’s expectations regarding personal terms and the deal has become ‘complicated.’
As a result, Monaco has also expressed an interest in the midfielder but ‘nothing concrete’ has materialised.
How good is Albert Sambi-Lokonga?
Lokonga joined Arsenal in the summer of 2021 for £17.2m, but in two years he has managed just 14 Premier League starts, and last season he only accumulated nine domestic appearances before joining Crystal Palace on loan in January 2023.
This was supposedly meant to signal a fresh start for the £50k-per-week man, but Palace failed to win any of the six Premier League games that he started.
Palace’s abysmal form meant that Roy Hodgson was reinstated as the manager, but the veteran coach was reluctant to deploy Lokonga in the club’s battle to distance itself from relegation as he was an unused substitute in eight of the final ten outings.
Statistically, it is clear to see Lokonga’s failed impact as he ranks within the lowest 33% in Europe’s top five leagues among his positional peers for shot-creating actions, progressive carries, and successful take-ons per 90, as well as the bottom 14% for tackles and blocks per 90.
His inability to stamp any meaningful authority at either end of the pitch is a worry for a club like Burnley, which require players to immediately acclimatise to avoid the drop zone.
Roy Keane has previously described his form as a “big concern” and with his Arsenal career seemingly written off, Burnley could make far more astute steps in the market.
They may have already done so with Berge, who has two seasons of consecutive, gruelling Championship football under his belt – the second of which saw Sheffield United secure promotion back to the top flight. Lokonga, however, does not have that in his locker and it would be a mistake to think he could make a desirable impact at this level.
Indeed, for the Belgian, the next step of his career may need to come outside English football as a relegation scrap at Burnley doesn’t seem the ideal environment where he can thrive.