BURNLEY’s new chief operating officer David Baldwin has warned the Clarets against ‘over-stretching’ themselves this summer, whatever league their future lies in.

Baldwin joined the club from Bradford City earlier this season, and has highlighted mistakes made by the Bantams in the pre-season that followed their successful Premier League campaign in 1999/2000 as something Burnley need to avoid.

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Although Baldwin only joined the Valley Parade outfit in 2007, he was still picking up the pieces from a summer of over-spending on the likes of Benito Carbone and Dan Petrescu seven years earlier.

But he believes the board at Burnley will make ‘very sensible’ decisions this summer.

“From my perspective part of the appeal for coming to the football club was that I could see these are people who make sensible decisions who genuinely care for the club and the longevity of the club,” Baldwin said.

“That is certainly backed up and supported by the manager in terms of his thinking.

“It’s refreshing to see in football terms a manager projecting the long term benefits to the football club, because in certain managerial circles it’s about the manager and decisions are made very short-term, decisions about particular signings and where the next three points are going to come from.”

After splashing the cash in the summer of 2000, Bradford were relegated to the Championship in 2001 and seven seasons later they had plummeted all the way down to League Two.

“I inherited those mistakes at Bradford in 2007 because six years later we were still mopping up the historic mess of Premier League relegation in the second season because of some very rash decisions that had been made,” added Baldwin.

“In the first year of their promotion they were galvanised by the same team that took them out of the Championship which was strongly represented in the Premier League.

“There were one or two additions but for want of a better word there were no superstars introduced, it was about who would fit into that work-ethic.

“In the season after, when they were relegated, they made some very high profile signings, people will think back to Benito Carbone, David Hopkin, Dan Petrescu, who were known within Premier League circles but they didn’t necessarily fit the Bradford way.

“What’s really important is that any decisions made by the board and the manager over the summer is the longevity and legacy of club is absolutely paramount.

“Making very sensible decisions in the summer is what will determine the long term future of the football club,” said Baldwin, speaking to the BBC.

Baldwin was brought in to work alongside chief executive Lee Hoos in October and with Hoos now focusing more on on-pitch matters, Baldwin is able to look at the business aspect of life in the Premier League.

“Watching from a distance and seeing Burnley’s performance on the field was immense last season and it’s been great to be part of it this season,” he said.

“But I have real empathy for knowing how hard people have had to work to play that catch-up game, because it comes upon you very quickly..”