Burnley and Leeds United were by far and away the best teams in the Championship last season. In the end there was very little to split the two.
Leeds United were the title favourites throughout. But Burnley surprised many with just how good they proved to be in the end, taking Daniel Farke’s side right down to the wire.
It wasn’t until the final game of the season that Leeds United won the Championship title. An extra 12 goals more than Scott Parker’s side was what won it for Leeds, who watched on as the Clarets finished the campaign with an incredible 33-game unbeaten run.
Ahead of next season, both teams look set for busy summer transfer windows. So far, Leeds United have signed Jaka Bijol and Lukas Nmecha, whilst Burnley have already signed five new players (four of them being permanent deals for last season’s loan players following promotion).
Burnley player Josh Brownhill during a Championship game against Sunderland.
Photo by Molly Darlington/Getty Images
Josh Brownhill’s Burnley future up in the air amid previous Leeds United links
One player who helped fire Burnley to promotion last season was Josh Brownhill. The midfielder scored an incredible 18 goals last season: a number bettered only by Golden Boot winner Joel Piroe with 19 goals in the end.
The 29-year-old Brownhill is out of contract at Burnley this summer. His deal at Turf Moor officially expires at the end of June and there remains a huge degree of uncertainty over whether or not he’ll remain with the club going into next season. Throughout last season, Leeds United were linked with a move for Brownhill, whose Burnley side return for pre-season on Monday.
Now, Brownhill has posted images of himself on his Instagram story which show him in a football training camp in Ibiza, called Local Legends Ibiza. It’s a camp that offers training facilities to professional footballers and Brownhill has been pictured there with a handful of random other pros, including Leicester City’s Ben Nelson.
Burnley player Josh Brownhill during a Premier League game against Tottenham Hotspur.
Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images
Josh Brownhill’s stats in the Premier League so far
There’s been a lot of talk about Brownhill’s future since the turn of the year. It was previously reported that West Ham were interested in signing Brownhill this summer, and that the former Bristol City man also had interest from abroad too.
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Leeds United were last linked with Brownhill in January but the Whites obviously didn’t sign anyone that month. Now, there’s certainly no ruling out a move for Brownhill on a free transfer given Leeds’ long-standing interest, but for Brownhill, it could be no different than staying at Burnley where he’s surely got a contract offer.
Stat (Premier League) Josh Brownhill’s record so far
Games 111
Goals 6
Assists 6
Big chances created 2
Wins 26
Losses 54
And as Farke targets players with Premier League pedigree this summer, he might think twice about signing Brownhill who has proved much more prolific at Championship level.
That said, he was playing in very poor Burnley teams before. It could well be different under Scott Parker next season, especially with Burnley having started this summer’s transfer window with a bang.