Saints' Malcolm Jenkins Announced as Minority Investor in Premier League's Burnley
Oct 20, 2021
New Orleans Saints safety Malcolm Jenkins (27) stretches during pre-game warm-ups before an NFL football game against the Washington Football Team, Sunday, Oct. 10, 2021, in Landover, Md. (AP Photo/Terrance Williams)
New Orleans Saints safety Malcolm Jenkins has purchased a minority stake in English Premier League club Burnley.
🏈 Two-time @SuperBowl champion and three-time Pro Bowl Safety @MalcolmJenkins touched-down at Turf Moor last Saturday 🏟️#UTC
Jenkins explained why he was drawn to the Clarets in Wednesday's announcement:
I'm excited to enter this new relationship, as Burnley FC is known for its tenacity, work ethic, good sportsmanship and efficient operational infrastructure. It's a great fit for me personally and my company to invest in the growth of the sport alongside a historic organization that aligns with our company values.
The Athletic's Matt Slater reported in January that ALK Capital paid around £150 million to purchase an 84 percent stake in Burnley, continuing the ongoing trend of American firms taking control of English clubs.
With Wednesday's deal, Jenkins claimed a minority stake in the investment group after having already launched his own venture capital fund.
After returning to the Premier League in 2016, Burnley has been able to avoid getting dragged into a relegation fight for the most part. That may not be the case this season. The club is 18th in the table, having won none and drawn three of its first eight fixtures.
Burnley Condemn 'White Lives Matter' Banner Flown over Manchester City Match
Jun 22, 2020
Players and match officials stand in a minutes silence for the victims of the coronavirus disease ahead of the English Premier League soccer match between Manchester City and Burnley at Etihad Stadium, in Manchester, England, Monday, June 22, 2020. (AP Photo/Shaun Botterill,Pool)
Burley issued a statement Monday after a plane with a banner reading "White Lives Matter Burnley" flew over Etihad Stadium during the club's 5-0 loss to Manchester City.
"Burnley Football Club strongly condemns the actions of those responsible for the aircraft and offensive banner that flew over The Etihad Stadium on Monday evening," the club said. "We wish to make it clear that those responsible are not welcome at Turf Moor. This, in no way, represents what Burnley Football Club stands for and we will work fully with the authorities to identify those responsible and issue lifetime bans."
Burnley captain Ben Mee addressed the situation in his post-match interview as well:
"I'm ashamed and embarrassed"
Burnley's Ben Mee responds to an offensive banner flown over the Etihad Stadium before today's game with Man City
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) June 22, 2020
According to Reuters, the plane flew over the stadium shortly after the start of the match, and the origin of the banner is unknown.
The aerial banner tactic is often utilized by supporters to convey their frustration with a club's manager or ownership.
The Premier League has used its restart to help draw attention toward the ongoing protest movement seeking meaningful reforms addressing systemic racism, racial inequality and police brutality. The demonstrations began as a response to the killings of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor and George Floyd in the United States.
Ahead of the league's first match back last week, players from Aston Villa and Sheffield United both took a knee after the opening whistle as a show of solidarity.
🎙 - "A powerful image to show football's social conscience."
Players from both sides take a knee before kick-off to show support for the #BlackLivesMatter movement.
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) June 17, 2020
The Premier League also granted the players' request to wear "Black Lives Matter" on the back of their shirts in place of their surnames for the first 12 matches after the restart.
Sean Dyche Talks Jesse Lingard, Added Time After Manchester United 2-2 Burnley
Jan 30, 2019
Burnley manager Sean Dyche suggested Jesse Lingard went down too easily to earn the penalty that set up Manchester United's comeback at Old Trafford on Tuesday.
The Red Devils' eight-match winning run under interim manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer came to an end against Dyche's Clarets, as United drew 2-2 at home to remain sixth in the Premier League, two points off the top four.
It could have been worse for the hosts, though, as they were trailing 2-0 until Paul Pogba converted a penalty in the 87th minute and Victor Lindelof equalised in the second minute of stoppage time.
Substitute Lingard won the spot-kick by falling to the ground in the box after Jeff Hendrick pulled him back by the shoulder.
Dyche said after the match he felt it was a soft penalty, and he also bemoaned the five minutes of stoppage time added by referee Jon Moss, per the Daily Mail's Chris Wheeler:
"I just don't like it when there's a touch on the shoulder and their legs don't work, but it's modern football. I'm not saying he does it all the time. But they're strong these lads and how come their legs don't work I don't know.
"I've no clue where five minutes came from. I asked the officials, but it came from somewhere. We just said [to the fourth official] there were no physios on the pitch. It's impossible it could be longer than three. Every minute counts. You just want a reason and there wasn't a reason.
"It's more the mentality it brings. Everyone believes when it's five minutes. 'Fergie time' as they used to call it. You could sense it. Everyone rises. I just don't know where it came from."
United's six league wins in a row under Solskjaer had seen them cut the gap to the top four from 11 points to just three.
It is now at two points after Tuesday's snatched draw, but Chelsea visit Bournemouth on Wednesday and can extend the gap to five:
It is a blow for United, as they were widely expected to beat Burnley, who are just four points above the relegation zone.
Solskjaer arguably got his tactics slightly wrong. Andreas Pereira was particularly disappointing in his first league start under the Norwegian, and Lingard should arguably have been sent on before the 63-minute mark:
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer defended his decision to start Andreas Pereira after the Brazilian's mistake led to a goal against Burnley pic.twitter.com/FRojingyEE
However, Burnley deserve huge amounts of credit. They were clinical in taking their opportunities in front of goal and defended superbly until the dying minutes.
