Burnley's failed pursuit of Cardiff City transfer revealed | OneFootball

Burnley were interested in signing Cardiff City's Ronan Kpakio during Craig Bellamy's spell as assistant

Wales manager Craig Bellamy has dropped an interesting transfer revelation involving his time operating as assistant to Vincent Kompany at Burnley, which saw the Clarets test the resolve of Cardiff City in an unsuccessful pursuit.

Burnley spent lavishly during Kompany's reign in charge.

According to a report by The Athletic, Burnley's spending in the summer of 2023 following promotion back to the Premier League at the first attempt totalled in excess of £90 million, as the likes of James Trafford, Zeki Amdouni, Aaron Ramsey, Jordan Beyer and Wilson Odobert all arrived at Turf Moor for significant fees.

Of course, the Clarets' investment ultimately failed to come to fruition as they were relegated with a whimper alongside Sheffield United and Luton, and they will now be hoping for better fortunes in both the transfer market and the top-flight, having gained promotion under Scott Parker in the freshly-concluded 2024/25 Championship campaign.

Burnley will intend on bucking the concerning recent trend of sides promoted from the second-tier suffering instant relegation, which has happened to the last six teams over the previous two seasons.

Craig Bellamy reveals Burnley's transfer pursuit of Cardiff City's Ronan Kpakio

Although Burnley sought to bolster their squad with a number of high-profile, costly additions, they also had one eye on the long-term future and attempted to pull off a deal for highly-rated Cardiff prospect Ronan Kpakio.

That's according to Bellamy himself, who revealed that Burnley tried to sign Kpakio last year after handing the 18-year-old a first call-up to the Welsh national side for the upcoming World Cup qualifying double-header against Liechtenstein and Belgium.

Bellamy, of course, has been familiar with Kpakio for a long time, having previously coached at Cardiff's academy, and the Welshman keeps close tabs on emerging youngsters in the Welsh capital.

He told the press: “I’ve known Ronan since he was very, very young and I’ve kept an eye on him.

“Even last year, we wanted to buy him for Burnley, so I’m fully aware of him. I’ve watched him especially over the last couple of years and his progression has been outstanding.

"His potential is ridiculously high. He’s athletic, he’s very intelligent. If he wasn’t injured I would have had him in [the squad] in March, but right-back is an area where we need to start developing players in that position. He’s the perfect profile for that.

"You might see it [Kpakio leaving Cardiff] this year. I don’t think it will just be them [interested].”

Cardiff City's Ronan Kpakio is an exciting prospect

Bellamy's sentiment has been echoed by many back in Cardiff for some time. There is real excitement involving the Bluebirds' conveyor belt of talent, despite recently suffering relegation to League One, and Kpakio is one of the most promising prospects at the club, having won Cardiff's Academy Player of the Season award last month.

The right-back only celebrated his 18th birthday last Sunday but will be expected to feature regularly in the third-tier, and perhaps would have done so in the Championship had he not suffered a serious injury during Cardiff's 1-0 FA Cup third-round victory at Sheffield United in January.

He has already clocked up six appearances for the Bluebirds and notched an assist in a 3-2 defeat against Oxford United on Boxing Day, while Kpakio has long impressed the ardent followers of City's various age-group sides.

Kpakio may represent an unknown quantity for supporters of Burnley, for example, but as far as those in Cardiff quarters are concerned - and Bellamy too, of course - the teenager is a richly exciting talent who is destined for big things, and it should really come as little surprise that Burnley, who previously courted Bluebirds striker Isaak Davies, expressed an interest directed by a coach with strong knowledge of what he can offer.