The attacking left-back has been having a fine season in the Championship, earning high praise from manager Vincent Kompany, who knows all about what it takes to make it at the highest level after captaining Manchester City to four Premier League titles.

• Maatsen stars in impressive Burnley win

• Sam McClelland takes loan performance of the week

• Everything you need to know about Maatsen's career so far

Maatsen recently suffered a set-back, being stretchered off with a shoulder injury in Burnley’s last match, a 4-0 win over Huddersfield Town on Saturday, but reassured supporters on social media that his injury was not too serious, no doubt news which was well received, as the Dutchman has become a firm favourite with the fans after making 29 league appearances for the Clarets this season, all but one of them from the start.

After previous successful loans with Charlton Athletic in League One and Coventry City in the Championship last season, it is looking like another year of clear progress for the 20-year-old. With his loan side sitting 12 points clear at the top of the Championship table, we find out how Ian Maatsen is finding life at Turf Moor and the sharp end of England’s second tier…

Firstly Ian, congratulations on being named Championship Player of the Month for January. It must be nice to receive recognition from outside for the progress you are making…

‘It was a good prize to win. I was really glad it happened because I’ve been through all my loans and I think this one is the best loan so far. So I’m really happy.’

Burnley are sat at the top of the table and you have had some great performances this season, both individually and as a team. Are you enjoying life at Turf Moor?

‘It’s really nice. When I came, from the first time I got here it was really easy to adapt, because the coach Vincent Kompany is Belgian and speaks Dutch. So for me it’s a lot better to communicate with him if I have any problems.

‘That’s really been spot on so far. My team-mates, they are really good too. There are a lot of Belgian players here and a lot of people I knew before, so it was easy to adapt and just get straight into the work.’

What has it been like learning from someone with so much experience of playing at the highest level as a defender, in Vincent Kompany?

‘Yeah, it’s been great and helped a lot. I can’t imagine a better manager for me at the moment. It’s really intense to learn from him, in every detail.

‘It’s not even all about on the football pitch, but also the outside bit – how you have to live as a pro, how you manage stuff outside the pitch if you’re not happy around your area and this and that. So it’s really helpful.

‘Since day one I’ve spoken to him about what I want to achieve as a player this season – to get more experience, of course, and playing for the trophy is a different pressure than when you’re playing for the play-offs.

‘I told him honestly that I just want to improve and grow as a player, be ready for the next step, and hopefully he can help me with that. He had plans with me as well, so it really linked well between me and him.’

Your start at Burnley was pretty much perfect, scoring the winning goal 18 minutes into your debut. Did that give you confidence in what you could achieve there?

‘I wanted to get the loan sorted as soon as possible, before the season started, to make sure that I was here from the beginning and not having to adapt myself while playing games, because sometimes it can take a bit longer to get used to new players and new places. That’s why I chose to go to Burnley at the start and be there from the first day of the season.

‘That first game, I’d only been training with the team for something like one week, I didn’t even know most of the boys yet. So that game was special, because it was the first Championship game of the season, on the Friday night, everyone was watching it and luckily I scored and I played well.

‘In that moment I thought that I just need to continue those performances, the way I play and the way I behave on and off the pitch. So now I just want to maintain it until the end of the season.’

You have plenty of experience competing for trophies at Academy level with Chelsea, but it must be a bit different when you have the hopes and expectations of the fans, not just your own ambitions as a team…

‘It brings a different pressure but the biggest pressure is the pressure we put on ourselves. When we play against any team, we know what our standards are and we are not bothered about any opponent.

‘It is really the pressure you put on yourself that is important, not the fans dictating us. So it’s a different kind of pressure, but they’re both really good to have.

‘The support I’ve had from the fans is really nice. The fans, they love me and I love them, because they’ve supported me all the way since I first put on the shirt. So I’m really happy that I have been able to play well for them and also that they have supported me, given me even more motivation to play well for them.’

You’ve had a great season going forward, getting four goals and five assists already, more than your previous two loans combined. That’s not bad for a full-back, what is it down to?

‘No, not bad at all. I’ve been surprised by the numbers I’ve managed to get this season, as well. I’ve got a special role in this team. The way the manager wants to play is just on the ball, have the ball, have loads of possession, lots of rotation, lots of working together with my team-mates and he gave me that free space to just play my own game.

‘If he needs to coach me about something I have done wrong or have to do better he will just put me to one side and tell me this is what you need to do and then just keep doing what you do, which is really nice.’

It must be satisfying to see the clear step forward you’ve taken each season on loan, from League One to the Championship and now competing for the title?

‘Before, my first loan was just to get the experience, to play men’s football. The second loan with Coventry was more to get the whole picture, with all the fans allowed, because my time at Charlton was during Covid.

‘This one is really focusing on my development, where I can be in the next step, whether it’s Chelsea in a few months or whenever. But this really shows that I’m feeling comfortable and learning from my mistakes and gaining confidence to grow even more.

‘That’s why I chose to come here for one more year in the Championship, to make sure I got more experience with a different kind of pressure on myself, and it’s gone well so far. So I just want to continue these good steps going forward and see what happens after the end of the season.’

You also had a big game in the Carabao Cup this season against Manchester United, marking Marcus Rashford at Old Trafford. Although it was not the result you wanted, was that a good game to measure your progress?

‘It was the first time I played against a proper Premier League top team. I think it was a good test for myself and for the team as well, to see how far we are with the team and as individuals.

‘I did really well in that game. It wasn’t enough to get the result, but for me it was more about being able to play in that game and being able to show my abilities against the top players in the Premier League.’

Finally, at the end of last year you asked people to nominate Burnley supporters who deserved something special, and then spent Christmas Eve visiting them to deliver gifts and food. What prompted you to do that?

‘Most of the time I have old football boots I have worn, which I send to my family back over in my country, to my grandma. This time of year I just thought: “let me do something for the Burnley fans that support me, the supporters that always come to the game to watch me but also the other players”.

‘I thought it would make it more personal to go and visit them and give them some help in difficult times, when sometimes you need a hug or need to talk to someone. So I thought: “just let me do it and give back to the fans”.’