Burnley FC: Summer transfer miss may cost Newcastle United £10m or more | OneFootball

Newcastle United pushed hard to sign James Trafford in the summer, but after an impressive start to the season, the asking price has likely gone up

James Trafford split Turf Moor opinion over the summer, as a disastrous Premier League campaign had many believing it was a near certainty that he'd depart for pastures new in the summer.

That move never materialised despite intense interest from Newcastle United, who reportedly had a £16m bid rejected for Trafford over the summer, with Burnley believed to have been holding out for a fee north of £20m.

Most Burnley fans would've snatched Newcastle's hand off for £20m after the season he'd just had in the Premier League, where mistake after mistake and general naivety was ultimately a contributing factor to their instant return to the Championship.

The fact Trafford reportedly made clear his desire to leave Turf Moor makes the fact he still resides in East Lancashire all the more baffling, but some time in the second tier may just have done him the world of good, as he's been able to turn in some improved performances.

Suddenly Burnley's call to keep him seems a measured one, as sitting second in the table, Trafford has certainly helped contribute in a positive way this time around.

The highs and lows of Trafford's Burnley career

There's undoubtedly been more lows than highs so far in his Burnley career, but he's shown steady signs of improvement of late and perhaps some Burnley fans are quick to forget that 22-year-old goalkeepers playing at the highest level are a rare commodity in modern football.

Many eyebrows were raised when Burnley completed a deal worth up to £19m for Trafford in summer 2023, but the England U21 international came in with pedigree and potential re-sale value - something which suits the club's recruitment motto.

Re-sale value only comes if the players you're signing perform on the pitch though, and Trafford certainly didn't do that last term, although he was given a baptism of fire jumping from League One when he was on loan at Bolton Wanderers up to the Premier League in a matter of months.

Trafford looked shaky throughout the season, but Vincent Kompany stuck by his man and left him between the sticks for 28 games last season until he finally dropped him in place of Arijanet Muric and results picked up, although the damage was done by that point.

Kompany departed, and when one of Scott Parker's first recruits was Václav Hladký, many thought the game was up for Trafford, but to the surprise of many, Parker gave him the vote of confidence as his number one.

Trafford has certainly repaid that faith this season as he's been the bedrock of the meanest defence in the second tier.

Newcastle will be kicking themselves that Trafford's stock has risen

Newcastle already have a positive experience of taking Burnley goalkeepers, with Nick Pope being their number one since he moved to the North East in 2022, but their failure to land Trafford in the summer is sure to leave a bitter taste.

The circa £20m the Clarets were demanding in the summer will now surely be closer to £30m after the England youth international has developed leaps and bounds over the summer.

While the measly league-low five goals Burnley have conceded this season can't solely be attributed to the fact he's been so good, he's been part of a defensive unit that has kept six clean sheets this term, with Trafford in goal for five of those.

The former City stopper has a new-found ability to command his area and, instead of breeding chaos in the back line as he did last season, he's now a calming presence who breeds confidence.

That's certainly shone through this season, and as a 22-year-old with experience in the England first team set up, it would be unwise of Burnley to settle for what they would've taken in the summer.