A stellar arrival and morale booster made transfer day 2021 at Burnley one of the best yet /Dave Thomas

We have grown well used to the long, drawn-out sagas of Burnley trying to sign players. For three weeks, maybe more, we were treated to the possibility of Maxwel Cornet, an Ivory Coast international, and had scored goals in the Champions League, signing for Burnley for £15M.

This would be a real coup, said the enthusiasts. Dyche meanwhile, remained silent. The airwaves and media sites were in overdrive... will he? won’t he? he preferred Hertha Berlin, this will be a great signing, he’s been seen in Manchester with Dyche, a private jet has been tracked from Lyon coming over the channel. He was spotted in the chippy in Padiham.

One thing slightly bothered me from the start. Quite why would anyone want to leave the delights of Lyon. I’ve been there, he’s been there for seven years, for the joys of Burnley (and Nelson)?

In the interests of balance, I do like Colne. Tubbs restaurant is highly recommended.

Initially one of his reasons for being less than keen to land at Turf Moor, allegedly, was the absence of any Burnley night life. Clearly, he’d never heard of the Miners. And nobody spoke French. I do, je parle francais, and my favourite word is merde. He actually speaks good English.

A second thing puzzled me: is this a Dyche-like signing; he knows most signings inside out. As well we know, players that come to Burnley must fit a certain template and must not disturb the ethos, team spirit and togetherness, that has been established. Is SD taking a gamble on this one? Or is it quite simply, a Pace-led signing, the new owner wanting to show his credibility?

And then there was a third thing that intrigued me, and this was the thorny question of quite how were Burnley going to pay for this star player. £15M, or euros, was the figure being bandied around, that’s a fair whack for us, and presumably, a decent wage to boot. Dyche remained silent.

Burnley is a small place. A village, Bill Shankly once described it. Kick one of us and we all hurt, said Stan Ternent.

In other words, news soon gets round a place like Burnley. Faster than a ferret on a conveyor belt and rumours spread about the club and how it was going to pay for the new player.

Anyway, Sky Sports said Cornet would be paid for in five instalments. All very normal, says my chum, who knows about these things.

Meanwhile: Connor Roberts, he of the mighty throw, Welsh international and highly thought of, appears to have been a snip at £2.5million. There’ll be a welcome in the Burnley hillsides.

But glory be, after a long saga Cornet did sign. Holy merde. Bienvenu Monsieur Cornet. A stellar arrival. A morale booster. With Roberts and Collins, a statement of intent from the owners. And just like the saying goes; the Cornet saga was as good as the arrival.

Deadline Day was one of the best. Normally we don’t even bother to watch but this one was different. We even thought we might get Ross Barkley. Such excitement hasn’t happened for quite a while.

And not only that: we now have hot water in the upper James Hargreaves.

Phew, well done to one and all.