Dan Burn’s return to Newcastle is one of football’s feel-good stories

Add as preferred source on Google

Late last night, Dan Burn was announced as the final signing of the January transfer window by Newcastle United. He joined from Brighton And Hove Albion for a fee of £13 million (The Athletic).

When you look further into the journey that Burn has taken to sign for the Magpies, it’s a feel-good story. Growing up the six-foot and seven-inch defender was a Newcastle fan. Like so many, he grew up idolizing Alan Shearer. The Englishmen would make it into the Toon academy but was released by age 11.

He would then play for a number of north-east teams such as New Hartley, Blyth Town, Blyth Spartans and then Darlington. He broke into Darlington’s first team and within a couple of years, he was signed by Fulham.

After a couple of loan spells away, Burn broke into the first team. But by the 2016/16 season, he was released when his contract expired. Then followed a successful spell at Wigan where he earned a move to Brighton in 2018. He was loaned back to Wigan for a season.

After four years in Sussex that leads us to now where he’s made the return to his boyhood club once again, aged 29-years old.

Acknowledgment from his idol would’ve been the icing on the cake for Burn

Not only has Burn made a long and hard-fought journey to return to Newcastle. But he has managed to earn the praise of people his 11-year-old self could only dream of.

His idol and hero growing up, Alan Shearer took to Twitter to welcome him not just to the club, but home. He tweeted, ‘Welcome Home Dan’.

Considering all the teams he’s played for and his journey through the English divisions, you can’t help but have a feel-good feeling reading about Dan Burn. A local lad let go by his boyhood club was able to grind his way back roughly eighteen years later.

Not only that, but to get a welcome from his hero. It makes you want to see him succeed at Newcastle and he’ll need to if they’re to avoid the drop.

He may not have been the first choice signing for a centre-back, but knowing the journey he’s taken to get here, you can’t help but be immensely proud of Dan Burn.

A story like Dan Burn’s is why we often call it the ‘beautiful game’. It’s a tale that you’d find in a film, so to hear of it in real life, it makes it that more special.