Burnley defender - awaiting clarification on his future at Turf Moor - excited by ALK Capital's takeover of the club!

The 35-year-old defender, who has been out of action for more than three months, is out of contract in the summer, with no word yet on whether he'll be offered a new deal.

The former Manchester United full back had presumed his time at Turf Moor was up last summer - having said his 'goodbyes' to team-mates - before the club offered him a one-year extension at the eleventh hour.

Those renewed terms, however, are set to expire in a matter of months. "It's all down to myself," he said.

"At the minute I need to get back out onto the pitch, the virus hasn't helped at all, and we'll take it from there.

"Football is a funny old game, it's full of ups and downs, so you just go day-by-day, keep putting the work in and see what rolls out at the end of the season.

"The new ownership might have fresh ideas and go down a different avenue, we'll see, but the most important thing for me at the minute is to get fit.

"I don't want it to just peter out, but it's a difficult scenario at the minute. I didn't expect to reach this stage of my career and be playing in front of no fans. It's just bizarre."

The ex-Scotland international's immediate future might be undetermined, but that isn't stopping him from getting excited about what lies ahead for the football club.

ALK Capital's recent acquisition of the club is currently the talk of the town and Bardsley, who spent time on loan with the Clarets in 2006, is both optimistic and enthusiastic about the takeover.

The all-action right back, who has made 64 appearances in his second spell with the club, believes the new owners will continue to drive Burnley's success story.

"I have not had the chance to meet the new owners yet," he said. "With everything that's going on it's a pretty busy time for everyone. Hopefully we'll all get the chance to meet them.

"It's an exciting time for the club, I'm sure the manager will get money to spend to invest in the squad during the window.

"The owners spoke about the academy and how excited they are about that so there should be excitement around the town for the takeover.

"It's a brilliant, well run club. It's a great club to be at and I'm sure it's going to go in the right direction with the new owners."

Bardsley added: "If you speak to people on the outside regarding Burnley we are classed as a respected Premier League outfit.

"In the last four years that I've been here there's been change, development of players and now the takeover. There are massive things happening at the club.

"They are exciting times to be a fan and a player. The manager and all the backroom staff have done a tremendous job in keeping the squad together, recruiting the right way and they've driven the club into successful times.

"Hopefully we can keep doing that with the new ownership with more investment."