Optimistic timeline of Bristol City, Burnley deal emerges | OneFootball

Scott Twine remains Liam Manning's priority ahead of the new season

Highlights

Bristol City are hoping to secure Scott Twine's services before the opening day of the Championship season.

That's according to an update on Sky Sports' Transfer Centre Live Blog (16:19, 01/08), with Ron Walker stating that the Robins are looking to strike a deal with his parent club Burnley, prior to the club's first encounter of the season against his former loan side, Hull City on Saturday, August 10th.

In what is Liam Manning's first pre-season in charge at Ashton Gate, the former Oxford United and MK Dons boss is looking to mould his initially inherited squad into one he can very much call his own, with plenty of player turnover already occurring in the West Country so far this summer transfer window.

The changes made so far have adhered to Manning's previous admission that more creative forces are needed among his squad to mount a sustained play-off bid in the forthcoming season, something which the Robins haven't been able to achieve in recent seasons as a result of inconsistent performances.

However, they have also made no secret about their desire to make Twine's move to BS3 a permanent one, having spent the second half of last season on loan in BS3 under his former MK Dons boss.

Bristol City remain hopeful of securing swift Scott Twine deal

Manning was the first to admit that he'd jump at the chance of working with the playmaker in this upcoming campaign, even prior to the conclusion of the Reds' initial loan agreement with Burnley.

"I’d love to work with him. I think he fits the club and profile of player we’ve got but there are so many challenges that go into it," he told the Bristol Post.

Since then, the second tier side and the 25-year-old have constantly been linked with one another, despite a period of strong interest from Sunderland and League One side, Birmingham City, before the Bristol Post revealed back in June that the club expressed the confidence that a deal between themselves and the Clarets could move quickly, once an original breakthrough is reached.

Nothing has progressed of note since those reports until a fresh update from Sky Sports on Thursday afternoon, which will no doubt bring confidence to all Bristol City supporters.

"They are hopeful of getting him ahead of their first game of the season on August 10 against Hull, where he spent the first half of last season on loan," the update continued.

Scott Twine addition could be part of swap-deal

However, the update from Sky Sports isn't the only piece of information that concerns Twine, as yet again, the Bristol Post have revealed that Burnley are exploring the possibility of a swap-deal between the two sides, which would see the midfielder and Luke McNally replace Tommy Conway, who has shown no real desire to extend his stay with the Robins amid strong interest from elsewhere.

This ambitious plot by Scott Parker's new side comes after Middlesbrough submitted a £5m bid for the Scotland international's services earlier in the week, but City are keen on the deal including a greater upfront sum in comparison to Boro's add-ons heavy proposal.

Furthermore, the report claims that Manning's side haven't been able to match Burnley's valuation of Twine, which isn't disclosed at present, and therefore, this avenue could be the route which sees the club's priority target eventually put an end to a long-winded transfer saga in more than one case.

It is also believed that Twine is extremely keen on the move, which aids such potential prospects.

Permanent Bristol City move should help Scott Twine flourish in the Championship

There's no disputing what Twine is capable of when at his confident best, and it would be a fair assessment that the last consistent spell of such form came under Manning at Stadium:mk back in 2021/22, recording an extraordinary total of 20 goals and 13 assists across 50 games, despite MK's eventual Play-Off heartbreak at the hands of Wycombe Wanderers.

However, since moving to Turf Moor just months later for a reported £4m fee, the former Swindon Town man hasn't been able to translate such form, only making 18 appearances and scoring 3 goals for his current employers, before also struggling for consistency at the MKM Stadium under Liam Rosenior in the first half of last season.

But, having shown glimpses of his best at Ashton Gate in a mixed second half of the season, it is a mouth-watering prospect for all supporters to think how Twine can aid a sustained top-six bid whilst being the epicentre of a new-look creative force under Manning, having already signed Fally Mayulu, Sinclair Armstrong and Yu Hirakawa.