It hasn't been the most exciting of transfer widows for Burnley. Chairman Mike Garlick has been labelled as the chief culprit for that but the news of a contract extension for Dwight McNeil should be hailed as a massive victory for the under-fire chairman. 

McNeil is a wonderful player. The academy graduate was thrown in at the deep end in December 2018, making his Premier League debut after Burnley's horrendous 5-1 Boxing Day defeat to Everton. Sean Dyche wielded the changes against West Ham United and the results were almost instantaneous. 

Tom Heaton and Phil Bardsley added leadership at the back. A strike partnership of Ashley Barnes and Chris Wood was difficult to defend against. But McNeil's influence on the left gave Burnley a new lease of life when going forward. 

McNeil was very different to the other wingers at the club. He was a throwback. His style of play was very simple: attack a defender one-versus-one and whip the ball into the box. A fearless performer. And his crossing is outstanding. Very few players in his age bracket would have possessed the technical qualities that McNeil had in his left foot. 

People wax lyrically about the player but he has never been the flashiest of footballers. The most impressive aspect of his game was how well he did the basics. Receive. Take-on. Cross. Repeat. 

Fatigue

The 21-year-old has been a victim of Burnley's winger shortage. With Johann Berg Gudmundsson and Robbie Brady often on the sidelines, there has been very little opportunity to rest the youngster.

McNeil has started almost every league match since his debut. As a result, his progress has been astronomic but there have been signs this year that a short rest would be welcomed. The effervescence that he brought to the equation has slowly simmered away and his impact has lessened. That's certainly not a criticism of the player.

He hasn't had time for reflection and e hasn't had competition for his spot in the team since making his debut. It is unfortunate that Gudmundsson and Brady have been unable to stay fit to help share out that burden of creativity. 

Keeping strong 

Nonetheless, a new deal is fantastic for the club in a tough period. The Clarets also gave a contract extension to Ashley Westwood, a few weeks ago. This summer, a key victory has been the ability to retain key players and now Garlick is acting quickly to tie the squad's best assets down. 

Burnley have over 11 first-team players out-of-contract in 2021. Garlick will not be renewing everybody's contract but he needs to be proactive with players that the club want to keep. The chairman will not want a repeat of the club's recent contractual mishandlings in June; hopefully, this is a sign of quickly learning lessons.