In preparation for their return to the Premier League, Burnley has announced the signing of striker Zeki Amdouni. Amdouni, who previously played for Swiss side FC Basel, will cost around €18 million. He had previously been linked with Serie A sides Torino and Lazio but will join the Clarets instead.
Amdouni spent last season with Basel on loan from FC Lausanne-Sport, and, at least initially, he struggled to take off with his new club. He didn’t score until his sixth game, and he only found the back of the net twice total before the World Cup break. However, once the season restarted, Amdouni was red-hot.
In Basel’s first five league games after the restart, Amdouni scored four times — tripling his previous goal tally. By the end of the season, he scored 12 goals and assisted five in the league alone. He scored three goals in his next two Swiss Cup matches to help the club reach the final, where they lost to BSC Young Boys. Amdouni’s main contribution, though, was in the Europa Conference League.
In the second leg of the first knockout round, Amdouni scored against Trabzonspor to tie the game on aggregate — Basel won by one. Next up was Slovan Bratislava: Amdouni scored the opener in the first leg and again in the 93rd minute of the second leg to take the game to extra time. Basel won on penalties.
OGC Nice was the next to fall, with two Amdouni goals helping the Swiss club advance on aggregate. Rebuilding Fiorentina was next: in the first leg, he scored in the 93rd minute to give the club the lead. In the second leg, he restored their aggregate lead with another goal, but it wasn’t enough and Basel crashed out in the semi-finals.
Amdouni finished with an impressive 22 goals and five assists in all competitions with Basel, scoring an extra five for the Swiss national team. Of course, Basel exercised the option to buy for €4 million before selling him to Burnley to make a profit of €14 million.
Burnley is returning to the Premier League one year after relegation, now under the guidance of Vincent Kompany. The club has invested strongly in the backline, with young goalkeeper James Trafford expected to be Burnley’s next record signing, but Amdouni reinforces the attack and adds versatility. The Swiss forward will compete to be the club’s starting striker.
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Image Courtesy of Adam Haworth, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
