Burnley have completed the loan signing of Sporting CP forward Marcus Edwards for the remainder of the season, with an obligation to buy for around £9 million.
The 26-year-old Englishman is the fourth signing made by the club this window as they continue to push for promotion back into the Premier League. The Clarets currently sit third in the Championship – three points behind Sheffield United.
Speaking to Burnley’s club website after signing, Edwards expressed his delight about the move, calling Burnley “a big club in general.” He also credited head coach Scott Parker as a key factor in his decision, having previously worked with him in Tottenham’s academy.
“I know Scott from my time at Spurs. I know what he’s like. He’s ambitious, he’s driven. We had a good relationship back then, so when I knew he wanted me to come, that was enough for me.”
Edwards in Portugal
This season, Edwards has played just 10 games for Sporting CP, scoring three goals. A muscle injury in late September kept him out for several weeks, and he has struggled to reclaim his spot, missing out on the matchday squad since early January.
Despite this, his stay in Portugal has been quite successful.
The former-Tottenham academy player left North London for Portuguese side Vitória de Guimarães in September 2019.
He impressed at Guimarães, scoring his first goal for the club against Arsenal in the UEFA Europa League just a month after signing. His 34 goals and assists in 96 games during his two and a half years there earned him a move to the Portuguese capital, Lisbon, with Sporting CP.
With Sporting, he managed 50 goals and assists in 120 games and regularly impressed for the club in European competitions such as the Champions League. Edwards was also part of the Sporting CP side that won the Portuguese league in 2023/24 under new Manchester United boss Rúben Amorim.
Burnley hopeful of promotion
Burnley have had an impressive first half of the Championship season and will definitely be hopeful of achieving automatic promotion back to the Premier League or at least through the playoffs.
The Lancashire side have lost just two games so far this season and are on an incredible run of eight clean sheets in a row, and have kept 21 clean sheets in the season so far. They are currently on track to beat the Championship record of 30 goals conceded in 46 games, held by Preston North End in 2006 and Watford four years ago – they’ve currently only conceded nine with 16 games left of the regular season.
Historically, strong defensive records have been a key factor in promotion success—15 of the 20 teams with the best defensive records since the Championship’s rebranding have finished in the top two.
However, Burnley’s struggles in front of goal have held them back. The team ranks 11th in goals per game (1.1), and only one side in the top seven has scored fewer.
Despite this defensive success, the side have been struggling for goals, and the departure of Jay Rodriguez to League One Wrexham won’t help the matter.
Scott Parker has faced criticism for setting up too defensively, with Burnley ranking among the lowest in the league for big chances created. The only teams with fewer are relegation-threatened Derby County, Cardiff City, and Plymouth Argyle.
Burnley will be hoping that Marcus Edwards will be the creative key to unlocking a winning formula as we head into promotion crunch time in the Championship.
