"Main concern" - Pundit warns QPR and Stoke City over Burnley FC transfer | OneFootball

The Hoops and Potters are both tracking Hjalmar Ekdal, but he has missed a lot of football through injury recently

Former England international and current pundit Carlton Palmer has warned both Queens Park Rangers and Stoke City about signing Burnley centre-back Hjalmar Ekdal due to his long injury record since joining the Clarets, amid rumours of interest in the Swedish international from the Championship duo.

Ekdal is into his third season as a Burnley player now, after a January 2023 move from Swedish side Djurgårdens IF, but has struggled to ever nail down a permanent place in the squad at Turf Moor, despite signing a four-and-a-half year deal.

He had been a regular in the Allsvenskan prior to his switch to the English second-tier, yet he made just nine Championship appearances in his first half-season in East Lancashire, and missed the last nine games through injury as Vincent Kompany's side cruised to promotion.

The Swedish international was limited to just nine appearances in all competitions in his maiden Premier League campaign, as he missed numerous months through different injury issues, and he is yet to feature in the league so far this term, despite returning to action in December.

QPR and Stoke City warned about potential Hjalmar Ekdal deal by Carlton Palmer

Ekdal made his first Burnley appearance in over eight months against Reading in the FA Cup last time out, but those 48 minutes of game-time feel more like Scott Parker displaying his match fitness for interested teams, rather than offering a route back into his promotion-chasing squad.

It has been reported by Swedish outlet Expressen that Championship clubs Stoke City and QPR are each keen to take the 26-year-old on loan this month, while the likes of Empoli, Sampdoria and Rangers are all also interested in a move.

Ekdal may well be a decent performer at this level, but his injury record speaks for itself, and former Premier League player and current pundit Carlton Palmer has urged the Hoops and the Potters to consider his struggles if they are to try and loan him in, and believes that a move to Loftus Road would be best for the Swede if he is to leave Turf Moor.

He said: “Queens Park Rangers have recovered from a poor start to the season to make up solid ground in the Championship, and will be gearing up for a surprise push for the top six.

“They’ve already started the transfer window well with Ronnie Edwards coming in from Southampton, and are looking to make it a double centre-back signing by getting Burnley’s Hjalmar Ekdal.

“He’s struggled for minutes at Turf Moor this season and is surplus to requirements. QPR face strong competition from Stoke City, and there is interest from Serie A clubs Sampdoria and Empoli.

“The main concern with Ekdal would be his injury problems. He has missed a lot of game-time through injury.

“He did play for Marti Cifuentes’ former club Hammarby. He didn’t play many games there, but the QPR manager would know of him.

“The concern would be his injuries, he hasn’t played a lot of football. He did feature in the FA Cup recently in the second half and extra-time, but it’s clear that Scott Parker wants to move him on.

“I think it would be a good move for him to go to QPR, but they would have to be careful due to his injuries.”

Ekdal's injuries have made his career falter over the last two years

Burnley fans will have felt that they had secured a real coup when they first signed Ekdal a little over two years ago for a reported £2.4 million, after he netted against Norwich City on his debut and formed a strong partnership with Jordan Beyer as the Clarets went unbeaten in his first nine games.

His injury issues soon began at the end of that season, as he missed out on the run-in from March onwards, then returned to make the bench in the first game of the 2023/24 campaign against Man City, but was again ruled out with a knee injury after that game for the next three months.

Three top-flight appearances in December then saw him sidelined and out of the squad for another four games, and despite returning once again in early January, he made just two more appearances for the rest of the Premier League season and was mainly an unused substitute as Burnley were relegated under Kompany last May.

Disaster struck once again after he went off on international duty in the summer, as he was stretchered off with a torn hamstring during Sweden's friendly defeat by Denmark in June.

He has only returned to action in the last month, and his appearance off the bench against Reading was his first under Scott Parker, who seems unlikely to prefer him over the likes of CJ Egan-Riley, Maxime Esteve, John Egan or Joe Worrall, who have made up one of the strongest defences in second-tier history so far this season.

With that in mind, both QPR and Stoke absolutely need to be careful if they are considering a move for the 26-year-old in the coming weeks, but if they take the gamble and he does stay fit, Ekdal could easily be one of the best loan signings in the Championship this month.