Wells fighting for Burnley future
Nahki Wells appears the most likely forward to leave Burnley this summer after the arrival of former England striker Jay Rodriguez.
Burnley signed Rodriguez from Sky Bet Championship side West Bromwich Albion this week for an initial fee of £5 million, with another £5 million to be paid in 12 months.
Sean Dyche, the Burnley manager, has plenty of options up front and Wells is bottom of the pecking order behind Ashley Barnes, Chris Wood, Rodriguez and Matej Vydra.
It appears as though Vydra, who signed from second tier Derby County for £11 million last summer, will be given more time to prove himself at the Lancashire outfit.
“We will wait and see,” Dyche told Lancashire Live. “It is early pre-season yet. It is the games that count for players like Vyds who has had bits and bobs and moments.
“It is the games that are important and the more we see him in games the more we will know how ready they are, not just him but everyone.”
However, Dyche has not ruled out entering the Premier League season with all five forwards.
“We don’t want to overload and have too many players but we want a competitive element and make sure there is a real edge to it,” he added.
“They are all vying for places, Barnesy and Woody really laid down a marker in the second half of last season, and the last couple of seasons. Jay is old enough and wise enough to know he will have to fight for his shirt and he is an excellent professional as well, everyone speaks so highly of him. I think he will be respectful while pushing to get in the side.”
Wells is not among the Burnley players out in Portugal for pre-season training, having been given an extended break after his Concacaf Gold Cup exertions with Bermuda.
The 29-year-old scored twice in the competition, a penalty in a 2-1 defeat to Costa Rica and a header in a 2-0 win over Nicaragua.