DERRY CITY LOOK set to lose another of their young stars to England as Burnley close in on left-full Daniel Lafferty.
Lafferty, 22, has impressed since joining the Championship outfit on trial last week and manager Eddie Howe is prepared to make a £200,000 bid to bring him to Turf Moor, BBC reports.
Speaking at yesterday’s launch of the Setanta Sports Cup, Derry manager Declan Devine said that it “looks like he will be moving on”.
Watford are also thought to be interested in Lafferty, who has been courted by a number of English clubs since helping Derry to a third-place finish in last season’s Airtricity League.
Before Christmas, the defender went out on trial to Derby County and Brighton and Hove Albion, and both Nottingham Forest and Huddersfield Town were reported to be keeping tabs on his progress.
Lafferty, who has been capped by Northern Ireland at U21 level, joined Celtic as a youth but returned home to Derry City in 2010.
Speaking to the Sunday Journal last weekend, Devine said that any transfer fees brought in would be reinvested to strengthen his squad for the coming season.
One of the first conversations I had with the Board was about what happens if we sell a player. Absolutely, I’ll be looking to strengthen my transfer budget with any money we receive. We have lost a lot of top quality players in the off season so anything that can be done to ensure that they are replaced should be done.
