Burnley FC may have been too hasty letting Plymouth Argyle loanee leave | OneFootball

Burnley let Michael Obafemi leave for Plymouth in the summer, but amid a striking crisis, that could be a decision they now regret

With Lyle Foster injured and Scott Parker showing little faith in his other two striking options, the decision to loan Michael Obafemi to Plymouth Argyle in the summer looks all the more baffling.

Scoring goals has proved to be Burnley's kryptonite this season, with their goal-shy nature seeing them net just 18 times, and nine of those came in their first two games when their squad consisted of multiple stars who no longer play for the club.

Nine goals in the 13 games that followed make for grim reading, as does the fact the Clarets haven't scored in open play across their last four games, while their last home goal that didn't come from the penalty spot was in mid-September.

It's a huge concern for Parker and it's something he needs to sort out in double-quick time if the Clarets are to stay in the thick of the automatic promotion race.

With the January transfer window around the corner, he'll soon have the chance to address his striking woes, but he could be left pondering whether the answer was staring him in the face all along.

To say Obafemi has been given a fair crack of the whip at Turf Moor would be untrue - he's been limited to mainly substitute appearances, and even some of those came out on the wing, which isn't his favoured position.

It's believed Burnley spent £3.5m to make Obafemi's loan move from Swansea permanent in the summer of 2023, but despite spending a fair chunk of cash on a player who had featured little in his loan spell, the Republic of Ireland international was still deemed surplus to requirements.

Obafemi has made just 16 appearances for Burnley, and to put that into context, he's already made 12 for Plymouth this season alone.

But given the lack of striking options Burnley have at their disposal, it's quite incredible they let him leave over the summer.

Foster arrived in the same window as Obafemi and is currently out injured, Jay Rodriguez is 35, and Andreas Hountondji cost as much as Obafemi yet most Burnley fans would argue is nowhere near as good.

The latter two of that trio are so unfancied that Parker elected to play Zian Flemming up front instead of them before the international break.

It does make you wonder why Obafemi was allowed to leave when he was a proven goalscorer at this level with Swansea, and his pace and strength is something that Burnley sorely miss in the final third, not to mention he can actually put the ball in the net.

Burnley's loss is Plymouth's gain

Plymouth have been the beneficiaries of the Clarets' strange decision to let Obafemi leave, and on the evidence provided so far, it does look to be a mistake.

While he certainly hasn't been prolific in a green shirt so far, he's amazingly scored as many goals in his last six Championship appearances as Burnley's three recognised strikers have all season combined.

When you consider that one of the two goals Burnley's trio of strikers scored came from the penalty spot, the stat becomes even more damning.

According to Plymouth's Director of Football Neil Dewsnip, Argyle beat off a "number of Championship clubs" to secure Obafemi's signature, with boss Wayne Rooney "thrilled" to have signed a proven goalscorer at this level.

Obafemi has established himself to be a regular in the Plymouth side of late, spearheading their attack in the battle to beat the drop.

They'll be thankful for Burnley's transfer blunder, as they were able to take a proven Championship goalscorer, but will be acutely aware that if the Clarets' attacking woes continue, his stay in the South West may just be a season-long one.