Chelsea manager Mauricio Pochettino sending David Datro Fofana on loan to Burnley for the rest of the season should be an ideal match for all parties, providing the move goes through. The youngster struggled on and off the pitch at Union Berlin during the first half of the campaign, and he is now gearing up for six months working under Premier League icon Vincent Kompany to try and put things right.
Fofana arrived at Chelsea in January last year as part of Todd Boehly’s youthful recruitment drive. The striker had been amongst the goals in Norway, bagging 22 across all competitions while still a teenager the season before his switch to Stamford Bridge.
A handful of appearances for the Blues in 2022/23 failed to see Fofana stamp his authority on the first team, and he was sent on loan to Union Berlin during the summer. The 21-year-old bagged two goals and one assist in 17 appearances for the Bundesliga side.
But it was a difficult time for the on-loan Chelsea prospect, as Union sporting director Oliver Runhert told Tag 24: “Changing the results is not that easy for a young player. He also had private problems at times. A little something came together. He also lacks an important goal to give him self-confidence.”
Senior figures at Stamford Bridge took the decision to recall Fofana from his loan in Germany and organise another temporary spell away. Sevilla were rumoured to be interested in bringing him to La Liga before The Athletic reported that Burnley are on the verge of sewing up the deal for themselves.
The forward is due to complete his medical over the next 24 hours before getting in amongst the Clarets’ bid for Premier League survival. Burnley are currently 19th in the table and five points from safety.
Pochettino should be pleased to see the former Molde ace clarify his short-term future early in the January window, with Burnley set for a two-and-a-half-week break after their crunch meeting with Luton Town on Friday night.
That should give Fofana plenty of time to bed in and get to grips with Kompany’s ideas. And he’ll need to absorb as much as he can, with the Clarets facing Manchester City, Liverpool and Arsenal before February 17.
