Burnley boss Vincent Kompany is keen on taking Arsenal outcast Albert Sambi Lokonga to Turf Moor this summer, reuniting after working together in Belgium.
The 23-year-old signed for the Gunners from Anderlecht in 2021 and made a bright enough start that season but has since fallen out of favour under Mikel Arteta.
The midfielder made 19 Premier League appearances in his first season but fell down the pecking order this campaign and moved on loan to Crystal Palace in January, where he has not made much impact either, with nine run outs in the top flight.
The Belgium international still has three years to run on his Arsenal contract, but it is highly unlikely that he has any kind of future in their first team, with Arteta planning to sign at least one new central midfielder this summer.
However, his career in the English top flight may well still have some legs as his former manager Kompany wants to snap him up for newly-promoted Burnley.
Kompany was Lokonga’s boss during the player’s last season at Anderlecht and would love to work with him again with the Clarets after seeing him earn a move to Arsenal with his performances in Belgium.
The Manchester City legend was smitten with Lokonga early on, saying that after watching just two of his matches, he felt that he could be the next Yaya Toure.
Speaking on Rio Ferdinand’s Vibe with Five last year, Kompany said: ‘I saw Sambi play his first game – his first two games – then he got an injury to his knee.
‘But the first thing I did when I saw Sambi is I went to Mikel and said, “You’ve got to watch this guy, he’s the new Yaya Toure.”‘
Arsenal paid around £17m for Lokonga in 2021 and would like to recoup as much of that as possible, but may struggle to warrant that full fee after an underwhelming two years in England so far.
Kompany’s Burnley side return to the top flight on a high after dominating the Championship, amassing 101 points and suffering just three losses in the process.
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