Quinton Fortune: What Lyle Foster Needs
Former Manchester United star Quinton Fortune believes Burnley striker Lyle Foster needs support and confidence. Photo: Gallo Images
Former Manchester United star Quinton Fortune has shared what he feels Lyle Foster needs to get back to scoring goals.
This comes after the striker managed three goals and two assists in 26 Premier League appearances for Burnley, who were relegated to the EFL Championship last season.
What followed was the 2026 FIFA World Cup, at which the 25-year-old made just one appearance as Bafana Bafana reached the Round of 32.
The striker, who had previously been diagnosed with mental health issues, also recently lost a dear friend in Jayden Adams.
Fortune expressed the hope that the attacker can come back stronger following recent setbacks, pointing to a lack of confidence as a potential underlying issue.
The 49-year-old emphasised that the player now needs support from those close to him as he looks to discover some form in front of goal.
“I hope he will come back stronger for South Africa after this World Cup because I was looking forward to watching Lyle, thinking he can bring that experience of being a Premier League player to lead the team because so much is expected from him,” the former midfielder told Premier Bet, per Burnley Express.
“I think for Lyle it’s probably just a lack of confidence and every player goes through that, but I was really rooting for him during the World Cup given the prospect of having Lyle up front.
“He must have something to him because otherwise why would Vincent Kompany have brought him to Burnley? I just think he’s a player going through a difficult time and he probably just needs an arm around the shoulder. He needs support.”
“I was lucky when I came over to Europe, I was 14. Everything for me seemed like an adventure. These guys like Lyle are probably having a tough time. They left home later so it might be a little bit harder for them to adapt, but the quality is there.”
“Lyle needs the support from his family, his teammates and his manager because when a striker isn’t scoring goals, that’s all they want to do. It’s like defenders who want to defend and keep their clean sheets. I’m sure he can pull himself through it.”
The Clarets will spend the 2026/27 campaign competing in England’s second tier, fighting to regain their status as a Premier League team.
Fortune believes the drop could ultimately benefit Foster if he can rediscover his scoring touch.
“It’s something you never want to experience. But look, Lyle needs to play and strikers want to be scoring goals. Scoring goals in the Premier League is even better, it’s the best league in the world, but the Championship is a tough league because there’s no nonsense down there.”
“Hopefully he can get some early goals and get his confidence back because the Championship is not going to be easy. It’s a brutal league. It can do him a lot of good though. He will feel much better if he can start to find the back of the net again for Burnley.”
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