Kyle should stay put, says mentor

3:15pm Thursday 18th January 2007

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THE SCOUT who discovered Burnley's wanted striker Kyle Lafferty believes the teenager is best served staying put at Turf Moor.

Lafferty was the subject of a bid from Scottish champions Celtic, reported to be in the region of £500,000, which the Clarets dismissed out of hand.

And Burnley boss Steve Cotterill has warned the Bhoys not to follow up with a second offer for the teenager - insisting he is not for sale at any price.

The fact that Hoops boss Gordon Strachan attempted a swoop for Lafferty does not surprise Raymond Laverty - the Clarets scout in Northern Ireland.

Laverty first caught sight of the young striker a few years ago when he was taking part in a trial for the Northern Ireland schoolboy's side.

And after monitoring Lafferty for a few months, talent-spotter Laverty had seen enough to recommend him to Burnley.

Since crossing the Irish Sea, Lafferty has caught the eye with his progress at both club and international level.

The 19-year-old has bagged four Championship goals this season - in his second full term with the Clarets - after making 12 league starts and 11 substitute appearances.

His international career has also taken off, clocking up seven Northern Ireland caps and starting in each of his country's last three Euro 2008 qualifying matches.

In an ideal world, Laverty dreams of seeing his young countryman starring in the English Premiership in Burnley colours.

Despite Celtic's advances, Laverty insists Lafferty is settled in Lancashire and, for the time being, believes he should continue his development under Cotterill's guidance.

"It's no surprise that Kyle is attracting big clubs like Celtic," said Laverty. "Kyle's going to be a good player, there's no doubt about that, and he's got the potential to become a very good player.

"Being associated with Burnley, my hope is that he would play with Burnley in the Premiership. I would hope that would be Kyle's ambition too.

"If I'm being truly honest, I want Kyle to be a Burnley great and follow in the footsteps of other Northern Ireland players at Burnley such as Jimmy McIlroy, Willie Irvine and Billy Hamilton.

"Obviously, Celtic are interested, but I think it's too early for Kyle. I would like to see him stay at Turf Moor for at least another year or 18 months.

"It's done him the world of good being around some good people at Burnley, people like Steve Cotterill, Terry Pashley and Vince Overson.

"They have nurtured him, protected him and generally looked after him. He's a lot to thank the people at Burnley.

"That's not to say other clubs would not be able to develop Kyle, but he's comfortable at Burnley and the club knows what he needs to do.

Laverty added: "I know Kyle pretty well and, really, he's still a naive boy living away from his family.

"I think he still needs the homeliness of Turf Moor for at least another year to 18 months because that has already helped him develop into the player he is.

"He likes it at Burnley and I think he'd much prefer being comfortable with somewhere he knows, rather than go into an unknown world.

"He would be living life in a goldfish bowl at Celtic, while at Burnley he's not got to worry about that."

Cotterill insists he is not interested in selling highly-rated Lafferty and certainly not for the £500,000 figure offered by the SPL champions.

Laverty also scoffed at the offer and believes the Glasgow club must part with much more of their cash if they are to ever prise away the teenager.

He added: "With that offer, Celtic are trying to steal him and I don't think Burnley would settle for anything like that.

"I don't know what sort of money you are talking, but it's a lot higher price than £500,000, considering the ability Kyle's got and what he has achieved so far.

"The boy has got lots of potential and he's shown that on the international stage. His performance for Northern Ireland against Spain - playing against some of the best players in the world - was fantastic.

"He was not overawed by any of their star names.

"When he signed for Burnley, I said Kyle would be an international player before he was 20.

"That's not a hard thing in Northern Ireland because we don't have a great deal of quality players, but the fact that his international debut came at 18 did not surprise me.

"From supporters right up to the manager, he's really highly thought of in Northern Ireland.

"The connection between Northern Ireland and Burnley runs deep."

Regardless of what happens in the January transfer market, Laverty has tipped Lafferty to carve out a successful career at club level.

"I think he will be a Premiership player - and at one of the big teams," added Laverty.

"If that happens, that's credit to the people at Burnley and what they have done to develop what was a big raw kid.

"He's got the ability. People say he's like Peter Crouch because of his height and in many ways there is a similarity.

"But Kyle can play on the deck - he's a very good player with the ball at his feet."