Burnley are now poised to make their second signing of the transfer window.
As the January transfer window comes to an end, Burnley has already added David Datro Fofana on loan from Chelsea, but the Clarets appear far from finished as we enter the final five days of the window.
In an attempt to maintain his team in the Premier League, Vincent Kompany is interested in Ajax winger Carlos Forbs, again on a temporary loan. Nottingham Forest may also be interested; the difference may lie in which team gives more first-team playing time.
Meanwhile, Kompany is also looking to strengthen at the other end of the field with a move for Montpellier defender Maxime Esteve. It emerged this week that the Clarets are working on a deal for one of their “main options”, with Montpellier coming under pressure to sell as the player enters the final 18 months of his contract.
Speaking ahead of his side’s game against Lille this weekend, manager Michel Der Zakarian was adamant that Esteve would feature and said that any departure wouldn’t take place until the early part of next week.
Burnley now close to signing Esteve
According to a fresh update from French newspaper L’Equipe, Burnley are now on the verge of signing Esteve. The fee will be €12m, which works out as just over £10m.
Esteve is attracting interest from a number of teams, but Burnley have forged ahead and they are now close to completing an agreement for the centre-back.
“Dominant” Esteve can be a smart long-term addition
Now that Burnley are seemingly well on the road to landing Esteve, it’s worth taking a look at what kind of player Kompany could be getting. Talent scout Jacek Kulig has described him as a “dominant” force at the back, and his numbers from this season support that assessment.
The table below shows how Esteve performs in some of the key metrics compared to fellow under-21 defenders in Ligue 1 (who have appeared in at least 10 games). You can see that he’s comfortable and precise in possession and also smart in his positioning, which allows him to make a particularly high volume of clearances and interceptions.
| Maxime Esteve stats | Total | U21 defender rank |
|---|---|---|
| Passing accuracy (%) | 81 | 6th |
| Tackles per game | 1.3 | 11th |
| Clearances per game | 4.5 | 1st |
| Interceptions per game | 1.6 | 3rd |
| Duels won (%) | 55 | 7th |
| Aerial duels won (%) | 59 | 6th |
He’s already prevailing in the majority of his duels, and that figure should improve as he becomes more experienced and continues to develop physically. Indeed, it’s worth remembering that he’s only 21 years old and has played just 60 first-team games at Montpellier so far.
Twice capped by France’s under-21 side, Esteve is a highly rated young defender who would be something of a coup for struggling Burnley. He’d be walking straight into a dogfight, but Montpellier themselves are only two points above the relegation places, so he’s used to scrapping it out towards the bottom of the table.
