STEVE Cotterill's appointment as Burnley manager has been given the seal of approval by captain Graham Branch.

The Clarets skipper is relieved the board have finally identified the man to succeed Stan Ternent as manager - as exclusively revealed in last night's Lancashire Evening Telegraph.

Cotterill was again locked in talks with Turf Moor officials today, haggling over the finer details of both the deal offered and the budget at his disposal to strengthen one of the smallest squads in the Football League.

Burnley bosses remains confident of officially unveiling the former Cheltenham and Stoke boss at a press conference tomorrow morning.

But Branch has wasted no time checking out the credentials of the new Clarets chief - and is delighted with the feedback he has received.

He said: "I'm glad everything looks like being finalised because it needed to be sorted out quickly for the fans as well as the players.

"Like us, they have all been waiting patiently for an announcement. I have spoken to a few people in the past 24 hours and the one thing that's immediately clear is that not too long ago he was the manager that many big clubs wanted.

"He comes highly recommended as a coach and he's going to need all those skills at Burnley because it is such a tough job in the current financial situation.

"He has also worked as a manager in the lower leagues for many years before moving up to Stoke and then making it into the Premiership at Sunderland.

"Unfortunately it didn't work out for him and Howard Wilkinson up there, but he has been waiting patiently for another shout at management and I'm sure he is itching to get going again."

One of Cotterill's first mammoth tasks will be to strengthen the remnants of a squad Ternent left behind at Burnley.

Only eight players remain under contract and the club expect answers next week on the one-year deals offered to youngsters Matt O'Neill, Joel Pilkington and Paul Scott.

But even with that inexperienced trio on board, Cotterill would still be looking to boost his numbers by between eight and ten new players - the main reason negotiations have dragged on for more than 24 hours.

Branch added: "Steve will have good contacts within the game. That was always one of Stan Ternent's strengths and he is going to need to do some similar wheeling and dealing.

"Hopefully, having worked in the Premiership and First Division, Steve will now be able to attract the calibre of player we need to move the club forward.

"He will already have his own ideas and he's probably going to bring his own people in, so it will be interesting to see who he keeps.

"It's a fresh start for everyone and I think all the remaining players will be looking forward to the pre-season now because it's an opportunity to try to impress the new man.

"The chairman clearly wanted to take a new path after the gaffer (Ternent) left and Steve certainly looks to fit the bill."

Assistant Bolton boss Phil Brown was today planning to fly out on a family holiday, quashing all suggestions he is still in the running for the Turf Moor vacancy.