According to a new report, Burnley are already in the hunt for a new defender, but they are up against stiff competition from some of their Premier League rivals.
Burnley’s latest transfer news
Burnley have once again had a very successful transfer window, bringing 15 new players into the fold following their Championship success.
Vincent Kompany’s
The new season has started with a bang, however, as defeats to City, Villa, Spurs and United have left them bottom of the Premier League and winless.
Kompany will undoubtedly need more time to get the most out of his team, but with January’s transfer window looming, it appears that the club have already begun their search for reinforcements for the second-half of the season.
Burnley are among five Premier League clubs interested in signing Shakhtar Donetsk defender Mykola MATEVYENKO, according to a report by TEAMtalk.
Matviyenko’s representatives are looking into a number of options, including a move to Turf Moor.
Crystal Palace are also interested, as well as Everton and Sheffield United.
West Ham have also been linked with the 25-year-old.
Who is Mykola Matviyenko?
Matviyenko is primarily a centre-back but can also play as a left-back or right-back and appears to be at the top of his game with a career-high €20m Transfermarkt valuation.
The 27-year-old has progressed through the Shakhtar Donetsk academy and has gone on to make 175 senior appearances for the club, contributing to an impressive 22 goals.
The left-footed Ukraine international has impressed over the past 12 months, as per FBref, ranking highly for passes completed, clearances and passes blocked.
Journalist Andrew Todos recently claimed that Matviyenko is capable of operating in either a back four or a back three, describing him as a “composed and experienced centre-back”.
“Matviyenko is a composed and experienced centre-back, who comes across as very assured, especially when playing alongside younger teammates. As he started his career as a full-back, he’s got more pace than an average centre-back and this aids him quite a lot in recovery challenges.
“He rarely goes in for wild tackles that might result in bookings or penalties and one of his main strengths is blocking crosses or goalbound shots. He’s also very good at playing balls over the top, playing out from the back, and he’s versatile.
“In my opinion, he can be world-class when he plays in a formation with three defenders. If he plays in a back four, he should play alongside a tall defender who can help him. He is good as a centre-back but the best matches of his career were when he was in a back three and he played next to wing-backs.”
Kompany currently has six centre-back options in Jordan Beyer, Hjalmar Ekdal, Ameen Al-Dakhil, Dara O’Shea, CJ Egan-Riley and Hannes Delcroix, so you could argue that Matviyenko may not be needed.
However, if Burnley view the player as an upgrade at the back after conceding 13 times in their opening five games, then they could well look to push through a move, making this one to keep an eye on ahead of 2024.
