Claret Villans
Fansided

Scouting Aston Villa transfer target Oliver McBurnie

By Josh Tonti

SWANSEA, WALES - OCTOBER 24: Oli McBurnie of Swansea in action during the Carabao Cup Fourth Round match between Swansea City and Manchester United at Liberty Stadium on October 24, 2017 in Swansea, Wales. (Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images)
SWANSEA, WALES - OCTOBER 24: Oli McBurnie of Swansea in action during the Carabao Cup Fourth Round match between Swansea City and Manchester United at Liberty Stadium on October 24, 2017 in Swansea, Wales. (Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

Per reports out of the United Kingdom, manager Steve Bruce is interested in bringing young Swansea City target forward Oliver McBurnie to Aston Villa. The 6’2″ striker has seven Premier League appearances and one EFL Cup start on the 2017/2018 term.

Premier League basement-dwellers Swansea City are struggling for goals. Like, really struggling for goals. The Swans have scored eight times in fifteen Premier League matches thus far in the campaign. For an attack that boasts the ex-Villan Jordan Ayew, Wilfried Bony, and the rising on-loan Chelsea star Tammy Abraham, the lack of an effective attack is a bit surprising.

Lost in all the attack shuffle is young 21-year old striker Oliver McBurnie.

McBurnie, a Scotland youth international, came to prominence in August 2016 with an EFL Cup brace against Peterborough on his Swansea debut.

Coupled with encouraging form in Premier League 2 play, McBurnie shows signs of developing into a quality forward. His play thus far, however, has stagnated, mostly due to a lack of consistent match time on a struggling side. He was set to join fellow Championship side Barnsley on a deadline-day loan, but the paperwork was not completed in time. As such, McBurnie is playing second-fiddle in Paul Clement’s side to the aforementioned forwards listed above.

Oli began his career at Bradford City before joining Swanses City in the summer of 2015. Two loans to Newport County and Bristol Rovers, and subsequent contract extension later, the forward is back to square one with the Swans. With substitute appearances of four, six, eight, eleven, twelve, and seventeen minutes in length, McBurnie’s skills are difficult to showcase. In effect, he is utilized as a garbage time forward under Clement.

As our own Jonathan Northall outlined below, Aston Villa forwards have accounted for just four of 29 league goals scored this season. Thus, a link between Villa and any available-for-loan forward bears sense.

Next: 4 Things Learned in Leeds Draw

Villa Verdict:

It is unlikely Oli McBurnie moves the needle much for Aston Villa. Across 47 professional appearances split across several leagues (mostly League One/League Two), McBurnie scored a total of eight times. Based solely on size, small sample size statistics and video, McBurnie is very similar to Keinan Davis. With Jonathan Kodjia set to miss months, and Scott Hogan at least a month away, another striker is paramount, preferably on-loan.

McBurnie could certainly spell Davis, who looks absolutely knackered at the end of matches. Moreover, the seamless insertion of a similar player allows Steve Bruce to continue his preferred one striker set-up, flanked by Albert Adomah and Robert Snodgrass. However, Aston Villa’s best bet is a veteran difference-maker.

The question remains: Who is available? And who can they reasonably attain?

Home/Transfer Rumors