Maatsen takes the title with Burnley
04 MAY 2023
There’s no question who gets Loan Performance of the Week this time around, as Ian Maatsen’s stellar season at Burnley was capped by sealing the Championship title with two games to spare.
It has certainly been a campaign to remember for the young Dutchman, as he has played an important part in Burnley’s dominance of the English second tier in 2022/23, with Ian Maatsen’s role acknowledged when he was one of four Clarets players named in the Championship Team of the Season.
He had already helped Burnley to secure promotion back to the Premier League at the first attempt almost a month ago, setting a new record by doing so with seven games remaining, the earliest any team has managed that feat since the Championship took on its current form in 2004.
However, manager Vincent Kompany had stressed his side were determined to finish the job by going up as champions, and that is exactly what they have now achieved, with Maatsen key to their success once again.
After a brief stumble following the confirmation of their promotion, Burnley had the perfect opportunity to seal the title with a return to form after three games without a win, when they travelled to their big local rivals Blackburn Rovers for the east Lancashire derby.
In a fiercely contested and at times frantic match, Burnley got the goal they needed while Maatsen and his fellow defenders kept Blackburn out for a clean sheet and the 1-0 win which confirmed their status as Championship winners in 2022/23, as well as allowing them to celebrate the title at their rival’s home, prompting a proud Kompany to claim ‘you couldn’t write it, it’s a day that will live forever’.
Maatsen and Burnley then followed up that triumph with another away win, this time 2-1 at Bristol City. While Blackburn had been all about competitiveness and defensive resilience, the 21-year-old displayed his attacking qualities from left-back in Bristol, playing a key role in his team’s patient building of moves from the back and showing his willingness to get forward on the overlap to make an impact higher up the pitch.
That latest victory edges Burnley closer to another landmark. Now on 98 points, the Clarets know victory in their last game at home against Cardiff City, when they will be presented with the trophy, will see them become the first side to surpass 100 points in the division since Leicester City on 2013/14, but whatever happens Maatsen and the rest of this Burnley team have already secured their status in the club’s history with their record-breaking title triumph.
Congratulations Ian, it's well deserved!
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