BURNLEY manager Owen Coyle has hailed Player of the Year Wade Elliott a "model of consistency".

The 29-year-old's wing wizardry made him the big winner in both the supporters clubs' and official end of season presentation nights this week.

Elliott, who signed a new three-year deal in March, has stormed to the top of the Championship assist charts after setting up a total of 14 league and cup goals this term.

And now Coyle is making it his summer mission to find a carbon copy for the left wing.

"We tried to rectify that in January and there were probably seven or eight different players which we considered wide left players," he said. "The one that we tried, the Argentinean lad (Marcelo) Carrusca, we felt was close - but we tried for various players, including Adam Johnson on loan from Middlesbrough.

"We wanted that type of player in the wide left position to give us that balance so that we weren't one-dimensional in terms of an out-and-out winger on the right and not one on the left. You have to adjust to what you've got, but the search continues and we'd love to add that type of player to the left hand side to give us that balance."

But Coyle believes wide players of the calibre of Elliott are hard to find.

"There's certainly a lack in that type of player which I think makes the game poorer," he said. "We all like wingers, as I like to call them, playing and getting by people, getting crosses in and I think the more teams that play with them there'll certainly be more exciting football. It might lead to more goals against but I think it will provide that threat going forward.

"It's an entertainment sport, and I think that type of player provides entertainment."

Despite complications which led to an attempt to bring Carrusca over to East Lancashire from Galatasaray falling through at the 11th hour, the Burnley boss has not ruled out resurrecting the deal.

"I would have loved to have done the deal, he's an Argentinean international and it would have been exciting for the fans, a natural wide left player who would have freed up Kyle (Lafferty) to play through the middle," he said.

"You never say never, but the difficulty was, in terms of the finance, we were only paying a part of his salary in the initial stages, but that wasn't the case in the latter stages."

It is possible that Besart Berisha could fill the void, but after suffering cruciate knee ligament damage on international duty last September, Coyle has yet to see the Albanian international in competitive action.

"Bes has still got a bit to do, I've not seen him play, but he's trained with us for the last month or so, and he just needs confidence to play games and take himself on from there," said the Burnley boss.

"He'll be back in pre-season hopefully flying, and he'll get the chance.

"I won't risk him in the reserve game (against Accrington Stanley on Wednesday). To be out for as long as that and to risk him in a competitive game would be naive at best.

"There are a couple of pro-am games on the pitch in the last week of the season, and Bes will play in those games with myself, just to give him a bit of confidence, rather than playing in a competitive game.

"He's got a terrific attitude, he wants to play, and sometimes you've got to put the reins on him, because he's desperate to push on.

"But I've seen bits and pieces of what he's done in training, and he's certainly got something, there's no doubt about it."

Meanwhile, although Elliott may be in need of a new trophy cabinet to cater for another impressive trophy haul, Coyle believes Robbie Blake ran the former Bournemouth man close.

The striker, who picked up four prizes at the supporters clubs' presentation, was in the five-man shortlist for the club's official player of the year award after hitting 10 goals and matching Elliott for assists going into the last game of the season.

"Wade got the awards, but I felt there was competition," said Coyle.

"Robbie Blake, at the top of his game, has shown what a top player he is with his passes and assists and the goals he has. He's got double figures, so he did well."

He added: "And James O'Connor has been outstanding from my time."