Reece Burke is set for a fourth loan spell away from West Ham United with Sunderland, Derby County, Barnsley and Nottingham Forest all interested.
West Ham United defender Reece Burke has returned to the club after his loan spell with Bolton Wanderers expired at the start of January.
The defender made 15 appearances, scoring once, for the Trotters who are reportedly keen to bring him back but they will be competing with a host of other Championship sides according to the Daily Mirror.
That Mirror report suggests Nottingham Forest, Derby County, Barnsley and Sunderland are all keen to sign the 22-year-old from West Ham so which club would be best suited to Burke?
Sunderland – guaranteed games
One of the main factors a young player needs to consider is the amount of match time he is likely to get on the pitch. Sunderland are short of natural centre halves and Burke would be someone who can come in and hit the ground running as he is familiar with the Championship and there would be no doubts by West Ham about whether he will get enough minutes.
Playing under Chris Coleman at the Stadium of Light is also a proposition that may seem attractive to the former Bradford City loanee.
Derby County – promotion push
Derby County have ambitions of returning to the Premier League soon. Derby can offer him an immediate promotion push and he’d be working under Gary Rowett – one of the brightest young managers in England.
Burke would be behind Curtis Davies and Richard Keogh but, should one of them pick up an injury, he will get his opportunity and Rowett is not afraid of playing young players.
Nottingham Forest – too much uncertainty
Nottingham Forest are currently without a manager at the time of writing and they also have quite a few options in defence (Michael Mancienne, Eric Lichaj and Matt Mills) so Burke may not get the playing time he wants and will not know if the manager is the right fit for him. Forest’s history does often attract players and it wouldn’t be surprising if that is enough to convince Burke.
Barnsley – again, uncertainty at Oakwell
The Nottingham Post report that Paul Heckingbottom is in line for Forest’s vacant post so again the stability factor comes into play for Burke when thinking about Barnsley. The Tykes, like Sunderland, are fighting relegation and and do not have the stadium or lucrative wage packets that the likes Derby could offer.
For different reasons, Derby and Sunderland look like Burke’s better options as the battle for his signature commences.
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