Veteran Walters refuses to look back as Burnley stoke his desire
THE way Jonathan Walters looks at it, he and Stoke City were friends with benefits for the past seven years. They both got what they wanted out of the relationship and, when the time was right, parted ways having both been fully satisfied by the arrangement. The Potters even made a healthy profit on the £2.75 million they paid Ipswich Town in 2010 after Burnley prised him away for a fee in the region £3.5m this summer. A return of 62 goals from 269 appearances was more than decent and his dependability was evident when he was the only player in the English top flight to rack up 100 consecutive appearances from 2011 to ’13. ‘We have done well for each other, I did well for Stoke and they did well for me,’ he states in matter-of-fact fashion ahead of his Burnley debut against Shamrock Rovers at Tallaght Stadium this evening. Over the last two years, Walters admits, he felt his influence at Stoke diminishing once Mark Hughes took over from Tony Pulis and began his re-branding of a club known for substance rather than style. So when he returned to Stoke after international duty with the Republic of Ireland last November with more starts under Martin O’Neill (five) than at club level (four) that season, he knew the writing was on the wall. And while Hughes was adamant he would be more than happy for Walters to stay, the Liverpudlian was eager to depart once a bid was accepted. ‘He said that if a couple of things didn’t happen, he be delighted to have me come back but I haven’t spoken to him at all,’ Walters revealed. ‘I spoke to Sean [Dyche] here before it happened and he said it looked like it was close and hopefully we can get it done. It was in place a couple of days later. ‘Whether your face just fits or not, it was more than likely from the point that he brought Saido [Berahino] in in January. ‘He didn’t do particularly well towards the end of the year; between January and the end of the year but look, he was always going to start the season. ‘So with Bojan [Krkic] coming back, Pete [Crouch] there, Mame [Biram Diouf] there and the lads on the wings it was probably going to be a similar scenario where I would not have started the season. I might have worked my way in at some point but now it looks as though I’ll be much more involved.’ Walters doesn’t expect to waltz straight into the starting XI, either, but he knows his attributes are exactly what Burnley need as they look to build on last season’s survival in the Premier League. Avoiding relegation remains the sole objective and while he could be forgiven for wanting a less stressful autumn to his career, Walters is gearing up for a tough battle ahead. ‘It’s been a great turnaround from where I have been,’ admitted the striker who was released by Blackburn Rovers as a youngster and toiled with numerous lower-league clubs before finding his way back to the top in his late 20s. ‘There are many examples, players who have been lower down but have taken the Premier League by the scruff of the neck, Jamie Vardy and some players in that Leicester team. ‘A lot of players down the years have been unlucky though injuries and a lot of good players haven’t looked after themselves and said they were unlucky. ‘When you’re doing well, it would be quite easy to sit back and take your foot off but, as soon as you do, you get a kick up the backside. I’ll always be hungry by wanting to improve. It’s been a good journey but hopefully there are some more good years left as well.’ Burnley look set to benefit.
62 JONATHAN WALTERS scored 62 goals for Stoke City in 269 appearances for the club