According to reports, Burnley have launched a £25m bid for West Brom stars Craig Dawson and Jay Rodriguez.
Burnley’s European adventure starts next month, courtesy of a seventh-place finish in the 2017/18 campaign. So it is understood why the Clarets have gone in so early with a bumper £25m bid for the Baggies duo.
Sean Dyche’s side punched above their weight last season as they sensationally qualified for the Europa League. Dyche had a paltry budget to work with at Turf Moor but his commitment, hard work and knowledge paid off, thus scripting a wonderful chapter this past season that will go down in the club’s folklore.
However, Dyche will need to bolster his squad in the summer if he wants another successful campaign next term. Also, with Europa League football to play next season, he needs to strengthen a few positions to have good squad depth.
In that case, signing a striker and a defender would be ideal for Burnley in the summer. The Clarets scored a mere 36 goals in the Premier League last season, which clearly tells the need to sign a prolific goalscorer ahead of the 2018/19 campaign.
Signing Rodriguez from West Brom will mean business for the Lancashire outfit. Rodriguez is a boy from Burnley, who played for the Clarets early in his career.
The 28-year-old went on to make 128 appearances for his boyhood club, scoring 41 goals in the process. His impressive form at Turf Moor didn’t go unnoticed as Southampton soon plucked him away. However, Rodriguez failed to deliver for the Saints as he consistently battled with injuries which halted his progress.
To resurrect his career, Rodriguez joined West Brom last summer and went onto score only seven goals as the Baggies were relegated from the Premier League. However, he managed to impress in an otherwise disastrous campaign for West Brom, and a move back to his former stomping ground would certainly do him good.
One of the major reasons for West Brom’s relegation from the Premier League was down to their leaky defence. However, one man did excel for the Baggies at the back – Dawson. He performed well alongside now departed Jonny Evans before losing his place to Ahmed Hegazi.
Dawson has been a mainstay for West Brom since signing from Rochdale back in 2010. He has thrived at right-back due to his versatility but the 27-year-old is more comfortable playing in central defence as well.
The Clarets’ defence has been well-drilled, with James Tarkowski, Kevin Long and Ben Mee all impressing last season. Dawson’s signing makes sense as he will add more experience and solidity to Burnley’s backline.
Dyche must aim to assemble a squad which would be capable of making noise in the Europa League as well as faring well in the Premier League. That being said, Burnley must complete the signings of Dawson and Rodriguez from West Brom as quickly as possible.
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