Burnley starlet Dwight McNeil insists Manchester United talk is just ‘outside noise’
Dwight McNeil says Burnley boss Sean Dyche is helping him keep his feet on the ground amid speculation that Manchester United are interested in the youngster.
The 19-year-old has impressed since breaking into the Clarets first team last season, and reports have claimed that United are interested in bringing him back to Old Trafford.
McNeil left the Red Devils at the age of 14, but Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has regularly sent scouts to watch his progress at Turf Moor.
However, the England Under-21 international insists he is paying no attention to the rumours.
"The gaffer just calls it 'outside noise',” he said, as reported by the Mirror.
“I’ve got to focus on my football and if that comes around it comes around in time. The lads here and the gaffer try to keep me level-headed and help me keep my feet on the ground.
"I think the most important thing is for me to concentrate on my football and see where that takes me in the future.
“You can’t get too far ahead of yourself because I’m still 19, I’m still young, I’m learning and I’m still maturing as a person and a player. We’ll just have to see what happens.
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"My aim is to keep playing every week. All I want to do is play football for Burnley. I just want to keep playing and keep improving."
McNeil has started in all 11 of Burnley’s Premier League games so far this season and scored in the recent 4-2 defeat to Chelsea.
Dyche’s side are believed to value the youngster at around £35 million.
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Alasdair Mackenzie is a freelance journalist based in Rome, and a FourFourTwo contributor since 2015. When not pulling on the FFT shirt, he can be found at Reuters, The Times and the i. An Italophile since growing up on a diet of Football Italia on Channel 4, he now counts himself among thousands of fans sharing a passion for Ross County and Lazio.