With clubs below them hitting the panic button and deciding on managerial changes in a bid to stay in the Premier League this season, all has been calm at Turf Moor. Sean Dyche has led his Burnley side to the relative safety of a mid-table position.
That is largely down to their incredible home form, which has seen them pick up an astonishing 25 out of a possible 36 points in front of their own fans. When you add the fact that they are yet to win away from home, it makes their current league placing all the more impressive.
Many pundits say that you need to pick up points on the road if you are to have any hope of staying up but Burnley seem to dispelling that notion with some ease. They have managed to turn their home into a fortress and will not feel the need to be looking over the shoulders for at least a few weeks.
Like all managers this month, Sean Dyche will look to add a couple of new additions to his squad in an attempt to keep Burnley’s momentum going and potentially claim a top half finish come the end of the season.
And with that in mind, let’s now look at three players the Clarets should target.
Yuto Nagatomo
Burnley are not necessarily known for buying players from abroad but that could all change if they swoop for Inter Milan’s Yuto Nagatomo.
He’s currently playing for Inter Milan but has been somewhat of a squad player this season with just 11 appearances to his name in all competitions, and he may well feel that first team football in the Premier League is too good to turn down.
Not only would Nagatomo bring a wealth of experience to Burnley, but he would also bring a large amount of versatility, as he can be deployed in a number of wide roles. That versatility would help boost a Burnley squad that has sometimes lacked genuine quality this season.
Charlie Taylor
Leeds United’s Charlie Taylor is one of the Championship’s most promising youngsters and what makes this situation all the more interesting is that he’s out of contract in the summer – which could force the Whites to sell.
Taylor, who can also play as a left winger, has been a feature of the first team at Leeds for the past three seasons and with his performances this term helping Garry Monk’s men into the Championship play-off positions, he has naturally been mooted as a top-flight target.
Leeds now have a difficult decision to make, as their fans would be loathed to see him depart during this transfer window.
Max Gradel
Max Gradel is currently away on international duty with the Ivory Coast at the Africa Cup of Nations with the possibility that he may well be playing for a new club by the time he returns.
The former Leeds United winger was bought back to English football by Eddie Howe in 2015 after a four-year spell in France. But it’s fair to say that Gradel’s stint on the south coast has not been a particularly happy one, with the Ivorian suffering a serious cruciate ligament injury last season.
That injury saw him make only 15 league appearances in his first season at the club, while this campaign has fared no better as he has featured just five times as a substitute.
Burnley would hope to conclude a deal before the end of the month, but they may not see Gradel make his bow for the club until early February due to AFCON.
