Dan Ballard reveals why he chose Sunderland over Burnley last summer
Sunderland signed Dan Ballard on a permanent deal from Arsenal last summer.
Ballard, 23, left Arsenal to sign for Sunderland last summer, with the Black Cats paying a reported fee of £2million for his services.
He'd spent the 2021/22 season on loan at Millwall where he made 31 Championship appearances, thoroughly impressing for Gary Rowett's side and making himself an in-demand name in last summer's transfer window.
Several clubs were in for Ballard including the eventual Championship title-winners Burnley.
It was reported that the Northern Ireland international was set to join Burnley on a permanent deal, before he opted for a move to the Stadium of Light at the last minute.
Ballard would go on to make 19 Championship appearances in his first season at Sunderland. Despite injury blighting his campaign, he showed his class, and he looks like a very good signing for the Black Cats.
And he's since opened up on his decision to join Sunderland. Speaking in a recent interview with The Athletic (via Chronicle Live), Ballard revealed that Clarets boss Vincent Kompany wanted him to play a key role for his side in the 2022/23 season, but that a move to Sunderland better suited the centre-back.
He said:
"He was very complimentary. He said it was one of the positions he wanted to nail down and he felt I could perform what he wanted to do on the ball. Burnley had just come down from the Premier League and Sunderland had just come up from League One but felt I could play more of a pivotal role at Sunderland.
"Burnley have had a great season getting promotion but I feel that I'm a big part of the [Sunderland] team."
Ballard was certainly an impressive capture for Sunderland, and if injury hadn't hindered his campaign then he would've played a key role for Tony Mowbray's side who ended the season short on centre-back options.
Mowbray will be hoping that Ballard can use the pre-season to get back to full fitness and hit the ground running next time round.
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