Key reason emerges behind Blackburn Rovers’ success in winning race for AFC Bournemouth and Burnley target | OneFootball

Blackburn Rovers have managed to beat the likes of Bournemouth and Burnley to the signing of Sepp van den Berg because they are confident about offering him a considerable amount of game time, according to Alan Nixon.

The Dutchman hasn’t been short of interest this summer with Sheffield United and Watford also thought to have been in the race to lure him away from Anfield – and his exit always looked likely with several others ahead of him in the pecking order in Merseyside.

Blackburn, meanwhile, are in desperate need of someone like the 20-year-old after losing Darragh Lenihan and previous loanee Jan Paul van Hecke – and are yet to recruit a centre-back despite seeing these key players move on from Ewood Park.

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He potentially had the chance to move up to the top flight with the Cherries believed to have been in the race for him, with Scott Parker’s side potentially needing another central defender to come in even with Marcos Senesi arriving.

However, he isn’t guaranteed game time with the likes of Senesi and Lloyd Kelly likely to be regular starters for the south-coast outfit and he could be in a similar situation at Turf Moor with Vincent Kompany already strengthening this area.

And that has enabled Blackburn to swoop in, though they will need to follow through on their promise of giving him plenty of game time to avoid hefty penalties that will be triggered if he isn’t one of the first names on the teamsheet at Ewood Park.

The Verdict:

Looking at his options, Blackburn may be the best destination at this stage with the Clarets already having the likes of Charlie Taylor, Taylor-Harwood-Bellis, Luke McNally and CJ Egan-Riley at their disposal.

Considering he has already spent time in Lancashire with Preston North End, those two clubs may be ideal destinations, but Kompany’s side simply won’t be able to guarantee him an adequate amount of game time.

As mentioned before, Bournemouth also have some options and may not be willing to start him in the top flight just yet, otherwise this would have been an exceptional switch for the Dutchman.

And looked at Paul Heckingbottom’s Blades, the signings of Anel Ahmedhodzic and Ciaran Clark have helped to bolster their defence, though they may want another player in there for depth with Jack O’Connell remaining out of action at this stage.

But van den Berg won’t want to be a bit-part player and at 20, this is a crucial time for the defender so he needs to make his mark if he wants to enjoy a successful career. He will only be able to do this if he plays every week.