- Joined
- May 8, 2002
- Posts
- 441,621
- Reaction score
- 44
You must be registered for see images attach
Scott Parker masterminded a defensive masterclass at Burnley this season - Getty Images/Alex Livesey
When Scott Parker was appointed manager of Burnley, late in the pre-season last July, he was taking over a club which, like his own managerial reputation, was in need of a considerable re-build.
On Monday night, as a 2-1 win over Sheffield United guaranteed automatic promotion to the Premier League at the end of a record-breaking season, it is safe to say both missions were accomplished.
For the third time in six seasons and with a third different club, the former England international midfielder lifted a team into the top flight. Only the Neil Warnock – with four – has taken a team into the promised land of the Premier League on more occasions, and it took him 28 years to record those.
If Vincent Kompany’s ‘reward’ for taking Burnley out of the Premier League 12 months ago was to leave Turf Moor for Bayern Munich, what price would an existing top flight team – for the sake of mischief, let’s mention two of Parker’s former clubs Chelsea and Tottenham – pay considering his achievements this summer?
‘I have nothing left to prove’
Parker can now undoubtedly be labelled a ‘promotion specialist’ but there was no sign of the season to come when he was named as Kompany’s replacement last summer, heading a shortlist that included the likes of Frank Lampard and Ruud van Nistelrooy.
Parker had been out of the game for 16 months, since a disastrous 12-game spell with Club Brugge – a stint that included just two wins and an embarrassing 7-1 aggregate defeat to Benfica in the Champions League last 16 – ended in the sack.
So, too, had his reigns at Fulham and Bournemouth, the latter just four games into the Premier League season and a 9-0 defeat at Liverpool, after guiding them to promotion months earlier. Nine months later, any doubts about Parker’s capabilities have, surely, been eradicated.
“I don’t feel that I had anything to prove,” said Parker. “I’ve been a manager now for four full seasons. The four full seasons I’ve been a manager, three of the seasons, I’ve got promoted, and one season I’ve got relegated out of the Premier League.
“And the other two seasons I lost my job at [Club] Brugge after 10 weeks, and I lost my job at Bournemouth after four games. And I didn’t think I had anything to prove, but I just needed to make sure it was the right place, really, and from the minute I stepped in an interview room and the people around gave me a [good] feeling and that’s how I like to work.
“I want to be around good people and I’m just absolutely delighted, not for me, I’m just delighted for this group.”
Twenty-three players out, 16 in
Parker’s first challenge was to complete the restructuring of a squad that was still undergoing major upheavals after relegation, and would continue to do so well into the new season – in the summer, alone, 23 players left Turf Moor and 16 arrived, one of the reasons Parker has used 37 players in the Championship so far in this campaign.
His first major “philosophical” decision, however, was an inspired one and, ultimately, would lead his team back into the Premier League as Parker decided that defence would be the bedrock of Burnley’s promotion challenge.
It was an approach which saw Burnley set a new club record of 31 games unbeaten on Monday, no small achievement considering they were a founder member of the Football League and are nearing the end of their 126th season in the league.
After conceding against Sheffield, Burnley are also averaging 0.34 goals against per game; still on course, if they do not concede more than two goals in the remaining two games, to set the mark for the best defence in English football history.
You must be registered for see images attach
Centre-back Maxime Esteve has been a vital cog in Burnley’s defensive rigidity - Reuters/Jason Cairnduff
Numbers one and two on that list are Liverpool in 1978-79 (0.38 per game) and Chelsea in 2004-05 (0.39). Not only is Parker, therefore, on course to top a list currently headed by Bob Paisley and Jose Mourinho – not bad company – but Parker was actually a player on that Chelsea team; an indication of how and where his belief in a defence-first approach was formed.
“It’s probably something we set out to do,” said Parker. “You step in as a new coach, I stepped in, pretty late when I was appointed, really, and then instantly you’re looking at the profile of the team and the profile of the squad and you quickly try and recognise what you need to do first and foremost.
“So there was an awful amount of work that’s gone in on the defensive side, not only structurally and coaching, there’s been a lot of mentality stuff, that’s gone in and what we stand for as a group.
“And I think if you look more deeply into the habits of this team, other than the clean sheets, you watch back through games or just see some clear habits that this group has. They defend their goal like their life depends on it.
“Does it give me pleasure to see it? Yeah, massively, massively. I get it isn’t the most exciting, certainly from the outside maybe, but there’s an art to that.
“If you watch us in certain moments, in terms of the real art of it, there’s a lot of work and there’s a lot of determination and commitment from this group of boys that gives us that real foundation. And our foundation is built at this present moment in time on cement. It’s not built on sand.”
That will be tested to the full in the months ahead, once Burnley are back for what will be a ninth season in the Premier League, out of the last dozen, next term.
But, assuming he can keep those players he wishes to, he clearly boasts a goalkeeper and defence that could function in the top flight, plus players like wingers Marcus Edwards, Jaidon Anthony and forward Hannibal Mejbri who look Premier League-ready.
You must be registered for see images attach
Hannibal Mejbri looks ready top make an impact in the top flight - PA/Nick Potts
Experienced captain John Brownhill led Burnley’s scorers, with 16 from midfield, and should be among a group who are far better players returning to the Premier League than when they left it.
Much work needs to be done, but it is hard to imagine how Burnley could be in better hands, assuming owner Alan Pace makes funds available.
As for Parker himself, he did not enjoy happy times after his last two promotions and was dismissed by both clubs in short order. Events of the past few months, however, suggest he may have found a more welcoming home in Lancashire.
Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
Continue reading...
