Burnley must be worried about top flight vultures circling in January for standout player: View | OneFootball

Maxime Esteve has been one of Burnley's standout performers this season which could lead to interest from elsewhere.

Burnley have enjoyed a fine start to the 2024/25 campaign.

As expected, the Clarets find themselves near the top of the table after 10 games, as their quest to earn promotion is well underway. From those opening 10 games, Burnley have won six, drawn three, and lost just one as they sit second in the table on a respectable 21 points.

Only Sunderland sit above them on 22 points as they have had an exceptional start to the season themselves. For Burnley, the goal is always promotion whenever they find themselves in the Championship, and there is no doubt that they will be strong contenders this season.

In the summer, they witnessed key changes at the club as Scott Parker took charge of first-team duties, following the departure of Vincent Kompany to Bayern Munich.

Parker arrived with plenty of experience at this level, as he has previously earned two promotions from the Championship with both Fulham and Bournemouth, so he will be confident that he can repeat that success at Turf Moor.

This weekend, Parker led his side to their sixth league win in 10 games as they picked up a comfortable 2-0 victory away at Sheffield United.

Defensively, the Clarets have been outstanding this season, but this may come back to bite them later down the line as one defender in particular is sure to have a number of clubs circling around him.

Maxime Esteve will likely be a wanted man in the near future

Maxime Esteve has arguably been one of Burnley's standout players this season but that will surely mean that he will have bigger clubs looking to sign him either in January or the summer.

The Frenchman featured for the Clarets on loan last season in the Premier League and made 15 top-flight starts before the deal was made permanent this summer.

So far, the decision to make the deal permanent has been a superb one, as his performances in the Championship have been excellent.

Burnley currently boast the best defensive record in the league, having conceded just four goals in their opening 10 league games. Esteve has played a huge part in that as he has started at centre-back in every single one of those 10 games, alongside either CJ Egan-Riley or Joe Worrall.

As Championship centre-backs go, Esteve has it all. He reads the game well, he is solid defensively and his passing accuracy is fantastic.

It seems that, even if Burnley do earn promotion this season, the defender could depart to a bigger club as he has a number of standout qualities.

Previous interest in Esteve

Despite Burnley signing the Frenchman on a permanent deal at the end of last season, he did receive interest from elsewhere. Wolves were one of the Premier League clubs linked with a move for the defender in the summer, but nothing materialised.

Outside of England, German club Hoffenheim launched a bid for Esteve at the end of the summer transfer window, but again nothing materialised, to the delight of the Burnley faithful.

It is likely that interest around him will really ramp up in January if his performances continue to impress. A number of Premier League clubs will surely be circling in the hopes of securing such a promising talent.

Esteve signed a new five-year contract in September but though that may allow the Clarets to demand a sizable fee, it's unlikely to put potential suitors off.

At just 22 years old, Esteve has potential in abundance, as he is already arguably among the best centre-backs in the Championship. It seems only a matter of time until a bigger club swoops in.