Swansea City’s young Scottish striker Oli McBurnie has joined Barnsley on a season-long loan on deadline day.
Swansea were keen for McBurnie to get regular playing time this season, as opportunities would be cut short after the club signed Wilfried Bony from Manchester City in a £12 million deal.
McBurnie has been lethal for the development squad, and has spent time on loan before at Newport County and Bristol Rovers.
The quotes
Barnsley manager Paul Heckingbottom said: “Oli is a player that we targeted early this summer and have successfully brought to the Club, which has not been a secret.
“He is a Yorkshire lad and has jumped at the chance to come here on loan for the season.” Heckingbottom said about the Leeds-born forward. “He will add some height and goal threat, along with that raw element of being an unknown quantity to Championship defences."
The manager went on to say that he is “looking forward to him coming into training and getting started."
Where does this leave Swansea?
McBurnie has come on as a substitute in each of Swansea’s opening three Premier League games this season against Southampton, Manchester United and Crystal Palace.
However, with Bony’s addition, the 21-year-old has fallen further down the pecking order as he was already behind Tammy Abraham and Jordan Ayew when it came to playing time.
Swansea prioritised signing forwards on deadline day, and made sure they would sign Bony even at the risk of not signing West Brom’s Nacer Chadli.
Chadli had been linked with a move to Swansea all summer, but the Baggies didn’t seem to budge from their reported £28 million asking price.
It was also thought that McBurnie joining Barnsley would help Swansea try and sign the Reds’ right-back Andy Yiadom, however that move never materialised.
Even though McBurnie was unlikely to play much, it is another forward option that Swansea don’t have for the season now.
According to Understat.com, Swansea have the second-lowest Expected Goals total through three games this season, at 1.24, only ahead of Bournemouth (1.17).
Bony, Abraham and Bony are good forward options, but there still appears to be a lack of creativity that was not replaced when Gylfi Sigurdsson left for Everton.
Renato Sanches and Sam Clucas were signed this summer, but against Palace the latter played as the deepest midfielder and manager Paul Clement has already described Sanches as a “dynamic, powerful central midfielder.”
McBurnie could make his Barnsley debut in their next game against Preston North End on September 9.