“£20-25m…” – Sunderland supporter commentator sends three emphatic, unequivocal messages.
Burnley is rumored to have interested in Sunderland defender Dan Ballard.
Burnley’s interest in Sunderland’s Dan Ballard is evidence of the player’s strong start to the season and the interest Premier League teams have shown in him.
Despite the interest, Sunderland controls the talks because of Ballard’s lengthy contract, therefore it will take a sizable offer to persuade them to sell.
Ballard might draw further interest if he keeps up his strong play. Sunderland’s aim is to acquire and develop young players before selling them for a premium price when their value is realized.
Football League World’s ‘Terrace Talk’ series, which features the individual viewpoints of our FLW Fan Pundits, includes this article.
Burnley keen on Dan Ballard
The 24-year-old joined the Black Cats last year, and whilst it was an injury-hit campaign for the Northern Ireland international, he clearly did enough to impress, as he was linked with West Ham in the summer.
However, Sunderland managed to keep hold of Ballard, and he has since signed a new contract to tie him to the Stadium of Light until the summer of 2027.
Nevertheless, the interest in the player hasn’t gone away, as reports came out over the weekend stating that Burnley are keen on signing the defender.
Speaking to FLW, fan pundit Jack understood the interest in Ballard, as he admitted that a sale wouldn’t be a huge surprise, although he was adamant the club should be holding out for a big fee.
“I’m not surprised at all because Ballard is a brilliant defender. He has been a brilliant performer for us, especially for this season, even adding goals to his game. If you’re looking for a similar young defender, you’re looking at Harry Maguire and Harry Souttar transfers, I think you could be getting £20m to £25m for him, particularly at the end of the season.
“Then he’d have had a full season with us, hopefully no injuries. He’s a great footballer, and we’re lucky to have him, but it’s going to be one where he knows he’s not going to be here for too long.”
Will Sunderland sell Dan Ballard?
It goes without saying that Sunderland will not want to lose the player, and they deserve credit for protecting their asset by agreeing a long-term contract with the centre-back in the summer.
This means that they have complete negotiating control and that any buying team will have to make an absurd offer to persuade the Wearside company to accept their terms.
Realistically, Sunderland won’t sell in January since they anticipate being in the running for promotion and losing such a key player would cause major disruption in the New Year.
If they don’t get promoted, it might be a different story in the summer because Ballard will believe he is capable of playing at the highest level.
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