Burnley are currently preparing for their final Premier League game before the international break against Manchester United. In his pre-match press conference, Scott Parker was questioned about whether or not his team was going to try and conduct any more business before the transfer window closes.
“I think we’ll try and look to try and strengthen in certain areas where we can. We’re active, we’re trying to look to bring some in. As always, at this time of the year, it can be tricky. There are clubs that don’t want to let players go, and the different variables that come with that, really.”
Parker also refused to rule out any more exits, saying, “I think it’s fair to say that maybe some will leave in terms of just getting some game time. The squad at this present moment in time is quite loaded, and you can see that. Ideally, we’ll try and trim that squad down a little bit. There’s only a certain amount of numbers you can physically name in a squad as well, so we’ll see what happens over the coming days.”
If Burnley’s exits are based on making space for new arrivals, then one area where fans may see departures is in the centre of the pitch, as Parker is currently looking at signing a new defensive midfielder.
Burnley look to sign Luis and three others
Burnley are interested in signing Benfica’s Florentino Luis. The 26-year-old has made 150 senior appearances for Benfica and has been at the club since 2010. Sky Sports journalists Luca Bendoni and Dhamesh Sheth have reported that a midfielder is one of four positions Burnley are looking to recruit before the transfer window ends. The other three positions are a centre back, a right back and a striker.
The midfielder has a release clause of £105 million, but with Benfica looking to offload him, they would accept a figure within the region of £17.2 million to £25.8 million.
Other clubs have been interested in signing Luis this transfer window, with Everton and Al-Hilal exploring the deal earlier in the summer, and Marseille and Roma being more recent suitors that Burnley may still have to compete with.
Luis "similar profile to Casemiro"
While growing up in the Benfica youth system, Luis was a highly rated prospect. Joao Tralhao was an important figure in Benfica’s academy from 2002 and 2018, and this summer was appointed assistant manager to Jose Mourinho at Fenerbahce.
In 2020, when he was assistant coach to Thierry Henry, Tralhao was asked about Luis’s ability and had this to say in response: “[He has] an exceptional talent and physical qualities totally in line with his footballing qualities. [He] has a very similar profile to Casemiro. From very early on, we realised that Florentino was on his way to becoming an elite player.”
Last season in the Portuguese league, Luis stood out not only for his defensive ability but his ball-playing skills. Defensively, Luis was in the top 11% of players for tackles won per 90 and the top 4% of players for interceptions per 90. Passing-wise wise he was in the top 20% of players for passes completed per 90 and top 15% of players for long balls completed per 90.
Having such a versatile midfielder in their roster will allow Burnley to adapt to the different situations and styles of play that they’ll face this season in their fight for Premier League survival.