BURNLEY manager Brian Laws has begun talks with Jay Rodriguez over a new contract.

The homegrown striker is in the last year of his current deal, but Laws is keen to secure his services for longer after seeing the 21-year-old make an impression on the first team.

Rodriguez has kept his place in the side since starring as a first-half replacement for the injured Ross Wallace at Crystal Palace last month and, after scoring a late winner in the derby with Preston doubled his tally with the opening goal in the Clarets’ 1-1 draw at Millwall on Saturday.

Laws revealed he has already spoken with the Burnley-born forward about an improved contract, and expects to press ahead with the deal after the international break.

“We’re mindful that he’s coming out of contract at the end of the season, but he’s young, he loves the place and I’ve already spoken to him about it,” said the Clarets boss.

“We’ve done it weeks and weeks ago, spoken to him about improving his contract, and I said once we get this international break out of the way, we’ll sit down with his agent and progress something for him, because we want to keep hold of him.

“He’s not going anywhere.”

After the ex-Barrowford Celtic striker earned his first professional contract under former boss Steve Cotterill in 2007, on being plucked from Burnley’s youth team, it was just over a month into Owen Coyle’s reign that he made his debut from the bench in a 1-0 home defeat to Bristol City, before being loaned out to Scottish First Division side Stirling Albion.

He made his bow in a Scottish FA Cup fourth round tie away to Celtic, again as a second-half substitute, and went on to hit three goals in 11 games.

But Rodriguez’s development stalled following the Clarets’ promotion to the Premier League as, after setting the club on the road to the Carling Cup semi-finals with a late third round winner against Fulham and going on to make a total of 34 Championship and cup appearances in their play-off winning campaign, he failed to feature in the top flight and was instead sent out on a short loan to Barnsley.

Although he had been pushed further down the pecking order following the arrival of £3million record signing Steven Fletcher from Hibernian, a broken ankle picked up in a reserves game added to his frustrations.

However, after target Billy Sharp turned down the chance to join the Clarets from Sheffield United in the summer, current boss Laws resisted the opportunity to search for fresh attacking options in favour of giving Rodriguez another chance to make the breakthrough.

“I’d rather have a look at our young players than go and buy somebody and overlook them,” said the Burnley boss.

“That’s why, yes, we had an eagerness to add some more firepower, but then you think ‘hang on, we’re going to lose an opportunity to look at our own’.

“You got to give them that opportunity, and I’m glad I didn’t bring anyone in.

“Jay could have been one of those that might have been overlooked a little bit longer, and I think he’s really jumped at his opportunity, and shown he’s improved, even over the last summer. There’s a real edge to him now.”