Burnley have done the right thing by offering Sam Vokes a new contract
According to BBC Sport, Wales striker Sam Vokes has signed a new three-year contract with Burnley, which will keep him at Turf Moor till 2021.
Vokes has been in good form in the ongoing season, scoring on two occasions including the winner in the 2-1 victory over Cardiff City a couple of weeks back.
The 29-year-old Welshman started his career in 2006 with AFC Bournemouth in League One before joining Championship outfit Wolverhampton Wanderers in 2008. Although he made an immediate impact and helped Wolves secure promotion to the top flight, he was deemed surplus to the requirements at Molineux and spent time on loan at other clubs including Leeds United, Burnley, Sheffield United and Brighton.
However, he was signed by Burnley on a permanent basis in 2012 and has been one of the cornerstones of their success in recent seasons. Vokes was pivotal to Burnley’s successful season in the Championship back in 2013-14, scoring 20 goals to propel the Clarets to the Premier League. Although they weren’t able to survive more than a season in the top flight, Vokes once again scored 15 goals in the 2015-16 to ensure that the Clarets did not have to spend more than a season in the second division.
The 29-year-old replicated his heroics in the 2016-17 season in the Premier League as well, scoring 10 goals and helped the Clarets survive the relegation battle. He wasn’t in particularly good form in the previous season as Burnley finished 7th in the Premier League but still chipped in with four goals.
It has been a difficult season for Burnley so far and quite understandably, their European adventures played a significant role in their undoing in the opening stages of the Premier League. Vokes scored Burnley’s first goal at the European stage in 51 years when he netted in the qualifying round of the Europa League against Aberdeen.
Burnley put in a couple of spirited performances this term in the Premier League after their European adventures came to an end with an aggregate loss against Olympiacos in the playoffs. The 4-0 drubbing of an in-form Bournemouth side and a thrilling 2-1 win over Cardiff City should help them regain confidence.
Sean Dyche signed Matej Vydra from Derby County in the summer after the Czech Republic sensation scored 21 goals in the Championship last season. However, Dyche has been reluctant to use him and his involvement has been limited to only 5 appearances so far, three of which have come from the bench.
With the likes of Matej Vydra, Sam Vokes, Chris Wood and Ashley Barnes in their ranks, Burnley have a perfect balance of attacking pedigree in their squad. All four of them are capable of playing as a striker, with Barnes and Vydra capable of playing as a supporting striker in a No.10 role. Both Wood and Vokes are renowned for their aerial prowess and pose a genuine threat from crosses and set-pieces. Vydra is a versatile attacker who is capable of playing as a No.9 as well as a wide forward down the right. in other words, having someone like Vokes in the squad does a world of good to the team dynamics in the final third.
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Vokes will definitely have a big role to play this season and in the coming days as well. He has been the first choice centre-forward for Sean Dyche in the ongoing campaign and the Clarets look like a more potent attacking force in his presence. Going by the kind of form he has shown in recent times, he definitely has the ability to take Burnley to greater heights in the Premier League.
Suffice to say, Burnley have struck gold by tying the Welshman down to a new contract.
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