Leicester City could offer more ‘lucrative’ terms than West Ham United in the battle to sign England international James Tarkowski from Premier League rivals Burnley, as reported by the Mirror.
When Tarkowski told the Telegraph in November that he would not extend his contract at Turf Moor and was looking for a fresh start, the Clarets faithful might have been worried about a subsequent dip in form from their highly-rated centre-back.
But they needn’t have worried.
Alongside the warrior that is Ben Mee, Tarkowski has been as consistent and reliable as ever at the heart of Sean Dyche’s backline, starring as Burnley ended Liverpool’s four-year unbeaten run at Anfield last week.
The former Brentford ace has done his chances of a big-money move no harm at all.
With his contract expiring in 2022, Burnley know, deep down, that they will have no choice but to cash in on their £40 million-rated enforcer sooner rather than later.
Long-time admirers Leicester and West Ham are still very much interested.
The Mirror believes that Brendan Rodgers’ Foxes are at the front of the queue and are in a position to offer better personal terms than their London-based rivals.
Third-place Leicester could also hand Tarkowski the chance to play Champions League football for the first time. Although it must be said that, at the present moment, West Ham are also sitting pretty in the top four.
Burnley, meanwhile, appear to be preparing for Tarkowski’s departure with a £4.5 million bid for Stoke City’s Nathan Collins (Burnley Express).
Then again, with Wesley Fofana, Jonny Evans, Angelo Ogbonna and Craig Dawson all in the form of their life, there is no guarantee that Tarkowski would be a regular starter at West Ham or Leicester.
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