Burnley have announced their first signing of the January transfer window and he’s certainly got a back story.
You might not be familiar with Oliver Sonne on the surface but he’s ready to battle and fire the Clarets back into the Premier League.
The club are currently third in the Championship and firmly in the hunt for promotion.
And the addition of Sonne – a Peru international – should strengthen their squad for the second half of the season.
The 24-year-old had been playing for Danish Superliga side Silkeborg – making over 100 appearances for the club.
And he’s recently been in action for his South America nation, despite being born in Herfolge, Denmark.
That’s where Sonne took on his toughest opponent, losing 1-0 to an Argentina side with Lionel Messi in it.
In the World Cup 2026 qualifier, Messi assisted Lautaro Martinez.
The new Burnley star said: “I have to go with Messi, I met him a few weeks ago when we played Argentina and, yeah, he’s just the main guy.
“The way he sees the game, he’s so technical and you can’t get the ball off him.
“Even though he’s getting up in the age and he doesn’t have the same power, his vision for the game is just phenomenal.”
Sonne is climbing through the ranks but he also has an alternative career to fall back on.
GettySonne also played at the latest Copa America[/caption]
The versatile player – who is the nephew of world-famous supermodel Helena Christensen – has modeled for Gucci and Armani.
He told BT in 2020: “It started at my aunt’s birthday. Some of her agents had been keeping an eye on me for a while when I was younger. And then when I turned 16 and started growing, and my face and body started developing, they asked if modeling was something I had thought about.
“Then I went to some interviews with them, and I tried to get some pictures taken and sent them off. And then it really went very quickly from there.”
And Sonne admitted he occasionally got grief for his part-time job, he added: “Of course. There are also comments. That’s what happens. Sometimes you get put in some funny clothes for shows and stuff, and of course they find that out on Instagram and comment on it. But I take that into account.
“They also ask about it. I had a period where I did it a lot, and I did some really cool things abroad with some of the top brands that we young people buy for a lot of money. So it was a lot of fun trying to be on that side of it all. Of course they ask about that, along with some of the experiences I’ve had.”
Sonne is eager to get going at Burnley and revealed the ‘aura’ around head coach Scott Parker that he felt from the moment they met: “I’m super excited! To be here and experience the club and the facilities – it’s mind-blowing!
“There’s a lot of reasons I joined this football club. The big one is that it’s a massive club with great ambitions.
“The manager is amazing. He has this aura around him and it’s easy to tell he’s a really nice guy and made a really good first impression.
“I see an environment here where I can develop as a person and a player and get some really good years being one of the main guys in the squad, scoring goals and getting assists.
“The ambition is to go back up to the Premier League and I will fight to make that happen.”