‘Thing that surprised me’: Pundit Martin Keown weighs in on Burnley’s decision to drop James Trafford
The 21-year-old was taken out of the starting line-up for the first time this season, having previously been the only Burnley player to play in every minute of every league game.
Kompany has previously ignored calls from supporters to make the change, but he finally made the switch on Saturday during the 2-1 win against Brentford.
It proved to be a highly popular one with the Clarets faithful, who chanted “MURIC” during regular intervals.
The change paid off, with the Kosovan stopper making a real difference with his pinpoint long balls forward and the quickness of his distribution out from the back.
The 25-year-old also made some key stops, one in particular when he stood tall to deny Yoane Wissa one-on-one.
The only slight complaint is that he looked nervy during the nine minutes of stoppage time as the Bees threw the ball into the box.
But all in all, Muric performed well and looks likely to keep hold of the number one shirt for the game against Chelsea.
Appearing on BBC Final Score, Keown was asked if he was surprised by Kompany’s decision to drop Trafford.
The ex-Arsenal man provided a blunt response: “No. The thing that surprised me most is that he didn’t do it sooner because Trafford was having a really difficult time.
“I understand the loyalty because I think that’s his philosophy. Okay, you pick your goalkeeper at the start of the season and you stick with him. Picking your number one is a big call.
“[Changing him now] I think is the right one.”
