Burnley have been linked with a move for VfB Stuttgart winger Darko Churlinov.
German news outlet Stuttgarter Nachtringen claim that the player ‘is in the sights’ of the Clarets, with the 22-year-old having played and scored in the cup win against Dynamo Dresden last week. Born in the capital city of Skopje, Churlinov has played 17 times for North Macedonia and scored three goals.
He came through the youth ranks at a couple of North Macedonian clubs, before making the switch over to Germany to link up with Hansa Rostock. It was then on to Magdeburg before FC Koln snapped him up in 2016 and he stayed there until 2020, playing one for the first team and 10 times for Koln II – for whom he scored seven goals in 10 games.
Stuttgart swooped in for Churlinov in January 2020 and, having played over 20 games for them in 18 months, Schalke took him on loan to play in 2. Bundesliga for the 2021/22 campaign. Churlinov made 23 appearances there and netted a couple of times while providing six assists.
It’s claimed that a sizable fee would be needed to prise the player away from the Mercedes-Benz Arena, but that Burnley are ready to put a bid on the table. When asked about transfers last week, Clarets boss Vincent Kompany said: “We’ve got to replace 12 bodies with the proceeds of two or three players to make the squad competitive. Its a challenge I’ve known before, since I started. The whole thing about this is can you replace one player for three or four, and can they in the future be your next Nathan Collins? That’s how you work.
“The idea is you bring in a team who can compete because they are a team, the foundation of what made Burnley successful in the first place. I’ve never had a team with less than 12/13 players coming in or out, it’s all I’ve known. Add in the fact my first two years were with COVID as well. So far it’s been the most relaxing it’s been (for me) so far!”