This article is part of Football League World’s ‘The Verdict‘ series, which provides personal opinions from the FLW writers regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

Burnley striker Wout Weghorst has stated that he will not drop down to the Championship following the Clarets relegation. 

Weghorst made a relatively big money move to Turf Moor in January following Chris Wood's departure to Newcastle United, signing for a fee believed to be in the region of £12 million pounds.

As quoted by the Daily Mail, Weghorst insists he will look for options elsewhere this summer in order to keep playing at the highest possible level, and stay in the mind of Netherlands boss Louis van Gaal.

Weghorst has three years remaining on his current Burnley deal.

With that in mind, we asked our writers here at FLW what sort of fee they thought Burnley should be looking to get for Weghorst this summer.

Marcus Ally

Burnley will be hoping to at least recoup the £12 million they spent on him in January.

At 29, it could be difficult to bring in much more than that, but player power holds more weight these days and the Dutchman will have his wish granted this summer.

With three years left on his contract, and having developed later in his career, the Clarets could potentially hold out for closer to £20 million, but the player’s stance and desire to leave helps the buying club because they know that Burnley want him off of their books, rather than having an unsettled player around in the second tier.

They could realistically push for closer to £15 million to turn a profit on his services just six months after his arrival.

 

 

Ben Wignall

Weghorst was a big disappointment in the Premier League for Burnley - but it is clear to see that there is a goalscorer there if utilised properly.

It does appear though that all his bridges have been burnt at Turf Moor, but shifting him out on a permanent basis may be difficult to do this summer.

The Clarets spent the best part of £12 million on the Dutchman and his wages won't be cheap, so it's finding a club that wants to bring in a 29-year-old target man, pay him a similar salary and also recouping the transfer fee at the same time.

All signs point towards a loan-to-buy kind of deal with a Turkish club at this point, but Burnley may have to end up lowering their sights if they want rid of Weghorst permanently - something like £8 million could do the trick.

George Dagless

I can hardly say I am surprised by this news.

It always looked like a transfer that would need to see Burnley staying up for it to be long term, though he obviously didn't have the most productive spell there anyway.

I think it's clear he's itching for a move away and once that happens it's best to get it sorted - Burnley will just need to try and recoup as much as they can of the considerable figure they shelled out for him earlier in the season.