?Michael Keane has been one of the Premier League’s stand-out discoveries this season, thanks to his spirited performances for Sean Dyche’s Burnley.
The strapping 24-year-old recently earned himself a call up to Gareth Southgate’s England set-up in March, and Dyche, according to a report provided by The Sun, has conceded the fact that he could lose his effective centre-back this summer, and has targeted Swansea’s Kyle Bartley as a potential replacement.
Bartley, 25, has been out on loan from the Welsh Premier League side at Gary Monk’s promotion chasing Leeds United in the Championship, and has caught the eye of Clarets boss Dyche, amongst a number of rival suitors.
Both AFC Bournemouth and Stoke City are said to be interested in the ex-Arsenal man’s signature, but the Turf Moor club have surfaced as the more feasible destination for the player, who Dyche believes has the quality to follow in Keane’s footsteps and make the step-up to top-flight football.
Bartley has just one season left on his contract down at the Liberty Stadium, after being loaned out twice during his staggered stint with the club. Swans boss Paul Clement could therefore show the player the exit door this summer in order to raise funds for his own personal plans, if he is not indeed already a part of them.
However, if Premier League football returns to Elland Road next season for Monk’s Leeds United, the former Swansea manager could also be keen to gain Bartley’s services for good, and offer the physical centre-half genuine stability at a club he’s already comfortably familiar with.
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