Burnley ‘are in talks with Arsenal regarding a loan-to-buy deal for Sambi Lokonga, reports Football Insider.
Lokonga, 23, was reported to be a target of Burnley’s last week – he played under Clarets boss Vincent Kompany at Anderlecht in the past.
The Belgian midfielder joined Arsenal in 2021 but has since fallen well down the pecking order, having been sent out on loan to Crystal Palace in the second half of this season where he’s featured nine times in the Premier League.
And just this morning, Football Insider reported that Burnley is in talks with Arsenal over a deal for Lokonga. It would be a loan deal at first but with the option to buy, with Burnley said to have made Lokonga a ‘top target this summer’ as they return to the top flight.
Arsenal paid an initial fee of close to £ 15 million for Lokonga in 2021. But in 25 Premier League appearances for Arsenal and nine for Palace, Lokonga has failed to live up to expectations and now he looks set for another move.
For Lokonga, a move to Burnley and a reunion with Kompany who was the last coach to get the best out of him seems like a shrewd career move.
And for the Clarets, it looks like a very good potential signing. Lokonga is still a younger player at 23 years old and he’ll give Kompany another option in the middle of the pitch, with Lokonga able to operate as a box-to-box midfielder or as more of a defensive-minded one.
This move seems to be gathering pace as we enter the summer transfer, and it could well be Burnley’s first signing of what is bound to be a busy summer.
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