"A very unpopular opinion" - Swansea City urged to steer clear of romantic Oli McBurnie transfer reunion | OneFootball

FLW's Swansea City fan pundit Will Hughes has urged his club to avoid re-signing Oli McBurnie this summer.

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more...

Swansea City and Hull City are linked with a summer transfer swoop for UD Las Palmas striker Oli McBurnie this summer, which would see the former Swans striker potentially reunited with the club where he played some of the best football of his career.

The 28-year-old played 34 out of a possible 38 times for the Gran Canaria-based club in La Liga this season, netting three goals and chipping in with six assists. Unfortunately, his contributions weren’t enough to keep his club in the Spanish top flight.

McBurnie will become a free agent this summer when his Las Palmas contract expires, and could reportedly be in line for a return to English football. Former club Swansea and Hull are two sides interested in bringing the striker back to the Championship next season.

Swansea City urged to consider other options rather than Oli McBurnie

After the news broke, FLW quizzed their resident Swansea expert, Will Hughes, on his thoughts about a potential reunion between the Welsh side and their former 20-goal forward.

Will told FLW: “So for this transfer and for this player actually, I’ve got a very unpopular opinion among Swans fans on Oli McBurnie. I’ve never really rated him as a player, and for this [reason], I personally hope that we don’t sign him.

“Of course, what I will say is yes, if we do bring him in, he is a better option than the players we’ve currently got. That I absolutely recognise. He’s better than Vipotnik, and he’s probably better than Bianchini.

“But, I don’t think he’s a massive improvement. He’s never really hit the heights in terms of goals since he left us. He had one season where he managed more than 10 goals.

“You could look and say that he has been in the Premier League, maybe that’s part of the reason why [Swansea are interested], I can see that. However, I will point out that a lot of fans have said ‘he was in one of the worst Premier League sides in Sheffield United’. I can counter that and say he was in one of the best Championship sides with Sheffield United.

“But for me, as I say, I personally don’t think he’s the answer. I’d like us to go for someone a little bit quicker as a striker. I’m no scout, I can’t name names, but I think there’s better options than McBurnie out there.”

It’s easy to get very excited about a former player who achieved success at the club before leaving, and potentially returning to the club to add to their legacy, but in McBurnie’s case, he may struggle to replicate the form he showed previously for the Swans.

As Will mentioned, the 28-year-old hasn’t been the most prolific at Championship level since he departed the Liberty Stadium, which doesn’t bode well for him if he returns to the second tier this summer.

Many supporters will look through rose-tinted glasses at McBurnie, as he enjoyed a very successful stint with the Welsh club previously. However, evidence since then suggests it would be rather unlikely he would return to the club and replicate the numbers he put up during his first stint.

Whilst the free transfer of the former Sheffield United star offers a low-risk option for Swansea when it comes to a new striker, you can’t help but feel that there is a more prolific option for Alan Sheehan’s side available this summer.

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