Burnley Football Club will be playing their football in the Championship for the first time since 2015/16 next season. 

Despite a late bid for survival under Mike Jackson following the dismissal of Sean Dyche, the Clarets could not avoid the drop, with a final day defeat at home to Newcastle United sealing their fate.

With the club reportedly closing in on making former Manchester City and Belgium defender Vincent Kompany their next manager, it looks like big change ahead at Turf Moor this summer.

With that said, a key part of being successful in the second-tier is keeping hold of some players following your drop down a division.

Here, we've picked out three players we think Burnley must do everything they can to keep hold of for next campaign.

Dwight McNeil

It would have been unthinkable to keep hold of Dwight McNeil at the end of last season if Burnley went down, but after the season he has had, the Clarets may just be able to cling onto him.

Appearing in every league match for the club this season, McNeil failed to score or register a single assist and looked a shadow of his former self.

In seasons gone by, McNeil has been fantastic for Burnley and attracted the interest of some big clubs in the transfer market.

Given the ability he has shown and the problems he has caused at Premier League level in the past, McNeil would be one of the best players in the second-tier and as such, Burnley should do everything in their power to keep hold of him this summer.

 

 

Ben Mee

Central defender Ben Mee and club captain Ben Mee is another player that Burnley should be looking to keep at the club for next campaign.

Mee's contract expires at Turf Moor this summer, but it is reported that the club hold the option to extend this by one year.

Given Burnley are set to lose James Tarkowski on a free this summer, keeping some sort of leadership and experience at the heart of the defence could be crucial for the Clarets ahead of next campaign.

Mee has demonstrated he can be a good central defender in the top flight, which may tempt some bottom half clubs into attempting to sign him this summer.

Burnley should refuse this, though, even if it means losing him for free in 2023.

Jay Rodriguez

Last but not least, the final player of our three that Burnley should be looking to keep at the club next season is striker Jay Rodriguez.

Over the last couple of seasons at the club, the 32-year-old has struggled for a starting spot, but in the second-tier, could be well worthy of one.

With Wout Weghorst's future unclear after making a multi-million pound move to the club in January, Matej Vydra out with a long-term injury, and Ashley Barnes' future also unclear with an expiring contract, it seems sensible to keep Rodriguez at the club this summer.

Not only that, but he has shown previously that he can be prolific at this level, scoring 22 goals in 45 Championship appearances when at West Brom in 2018/19.