CLARETS chief executive Dave Edmundson insists the six-figure capture of Ade Akinbiyi outlines the club's ambition to reach the Premiership.

Striker Akinbiyi made the switch back to Turf Moor from Sheffield United in a £650,000 New Year's Day move that sees Burnley pay a further £100,000 in the summer.

The 32-year-old became a fans' favourite during his previous Clarets spell, when he netted 16 Championship goals in 38 starts before switching to the Blades almost 12 months ago.

With Burnley operating on a weekly loss of around £25,000 to £30,000, the club's board of directors have dipped into their own pockets to fund the Akinbiyi deal.

As Steve Cotterill looks to guide his side back towards the promotion play-off places in 2007, Edmundson believes the board should be applauded for providing the Clarets boss with substantial financial clout in the transfer market.

"The fact that we have gone out to sign Ade Akinbiyi, who is a real fans' favourite, indicates the ambition of the club," said Edmundson.

"There was all that comment when he went, but this indicates that there is real resolve by the board of directors to see if they can give Steve Cotterill as much as a transfer kitty as possible.

"I cannot commend the board more highly.

"We know the situation we find ourselves in and that we are competing against some real big hitters who are spending millions of pounds on their player budget.

"Our player budget is very small in this league compared to clubs like Birmingham - it is one of the smallest.

"There's always been a shortfall in what we get through match-day revenue.

"It's always been the board who have pretty much made up the shortfall, dipping their hands in their pockets."

Edmundson said he could not comment on whether further transfer funds would be made available to Cotterill during the January transfer window.

But he believes the capture of Akinbiyi is a huge boost as Burnley look to try and end a disappointing run of form that has seen them glean just six points from a possible 30 and slip to 12th in the league.

Edmundson added: "It shows the difference in the last two new years.

"Last year, we went into the cup game with Derby just before Ade Akinbiyi went to Sheffield United. Now, he should be registered in time to play against Reading this Saturday.

"Obviously, the downturn in results when Ade Akinbiyi left gives you, in some ways, an idea of the affect he had on the team.

"It took some time before we managed to secure Andy Gray and the prospect of those two in a strike partnership is exciting.

"We've also got Gifton Noel-Williams, who has been playing extremely well, and the promise of Kyle Lafferty and Chris McCann coming through.

"We've probably had a little bit of a downturn in results recently, but we are very much in touch with the play-off places and that is where we are looking to finish."