Football League World
·27 October 2024
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·27 October 2024
Kieran Trippier's career post-Burnley makes it look mad that Spurs got him for £3.5m
Kieran Trippier will forever be regarded as one of the greats of the Sean Dyche era, but the nominal £3.5m fee Burnley received for him is sure to sting when looking back at the career he's gone on to have.
Initially brought to Turf Moor by Eddie Howe in the summer of 2011 to replace the outgoing Tyrone Mears, Trippier was a bit of an unknown quantity who arrived on an initial loan move from Manchester City.
A matter of months later, in January 2012, Burnley made his loan permanent, and the rest is history, as they say, as Trippier went on to establish himself as a key member of the Burnley team.
He did so under two managers, as after Howe returned to Bournemouth, he remained in favour under Sean Dyche, who was incredibly the man who turned Trippier's life around, helping overcome a drinking and partying habit, which the Newcastle man himself has admitted helped shape his career.
His Turf Moor stay was a mightily successful one too, as not only did he help Burnley stay in the league in 2012/13, but he was an integral part of the promotion team in 2013/14 - earning him two successive appearances in the PFA Championship Team of the Year.
But he was only to stay at Turf Moor for one more season, making a name for himself in the Premier League before Tottenham came calling after the Clarets' relegation and snapped him up for £3.5m.
Trippier was certainly a lesser-known quantity when he winged in to Turf Moor, but his stock began to rise exponentially in the Dyche days, particularly during the 2013/14 season when he amassed 12 assists en route to helping Burnley to promotion.
Famed for his delivery of the ball, Trippier was the ultimate wing-back, bombing up and down the right-hand side and delivering balls into the box, which was often Burnley's outlet.
His size was a bit of an issue for a defender, and before Dyche came to Burnley, his defensive ability was certainly in question.
But Dyche worked on that and turned him into the perfect modern day full back - someone who could get forward and join the attacks but also someone who wasn't shy of putting his head in where it hurts.
He was an ever-present in the Clarets' failed attempt to beat the drop in 2014/15, but that proved to be his shop window moment, as after their relegation was confirmed, his £3.5m release clause was his ticket back into the big time.
It was Tottenham Hotspur who were the lucky club to activate the dirt-cheap release clause, and Trippier endured a moderately successful time in North London, racking up 114 appearances, but perhaps most notably, helped them reach the Champions League final in 2019.
From there, Atlético Madrid came calling, which perhaps wasn't a great surprise seeing Dyche and Diego Simeone were often compared as managers who had similar footballing beliefs.
He added the only trophy of his career to date whilst playing in Spain, part of their La Liga winning side in 2020/21.
The Manchester City youth product came close to more silverware after his move to Newcastle in 2021/22, when he was key in them reaching the 2022/23 EFL Cup final, only to lose out to Manchester United.
He's played in the Champions League on Tyneside though and remains there to this day, where he's battling to get the Toon army back onto the continent.
Trippier has had international recognition too, racking up 54 caps and providing most England fans with a moment that will last a lifetime when his World Cup semi-final free-kick against Croatia hit the back of the net in 2018.
Two failed tilts at the Euro final in 2020 and 2024 are sure to sting, but not half as much as it will sting Burnley knowing they lost one of their best players in a generation for £3.5m.