Burnley boss Scott Parker drops James Ward-Prowse selection hint ahead of Sunderland clash
Sunderland host Burnley in the Premier League on Monday evening
Burnley boss Scott Parker has hinted that new signing James Ward-Prowse may not be ready to play a significant role in his side’s trip to face Sunderland on Monday evening.
The experienced midfielder signed for the Clarets from West Ham on a temporary deal earlier this week, but has spent a significant amount of time out of the first team picture in East London, and has just 416 minutes of Premier League football to his name this term, with his most recent outing coming back in September.
As a consequence, while Parker has been quick to emphasise the boost that he believes Ward-Prowse will bring to his relegation-threatened squad, the head coach has also implied that Monday’s contest on Wearside may come a touch too soon for him to feature in his starting XI.
What has Burnley boss Scott Parker said about James Ward-Prowse ahead of Sunderland clash?
Speaking in a pre-match press conference on Thursday afternoon, he said: “Well I think first and foremost, he brings quality. We’ve obviously seen James play in numerous games in the Premier League and he brings a know-how and has been at the level.
“Professional-wise as well, in terms of what he represents and what he stands for, I think he'll be a very good addition for us. We needed some covering there with Josh [Cullen] coming out with a long-term injury and we've done that and feel that we've recruited someone who's going to be valuable to us. We need to get him up to speed now, see how he is in the coming days in terms of actual work and where he is. But we're pleased with that signing.”
When asked about the importance of Ward-Prowse’s notable top flight experience, Parker replied: “Very important, really, really important. It’s a young squad, like I've said, with players learning in the arena at this present moment in time and it’s the first time they've been around it.
“Like anything, you're trying to balance a squad with experience and players that actually know what it looks like. You want someone who’s got the t-shirt and James is one of them. He will definitely help us and certainly help us in our current situation, for sure, and help this young group in terms of steering them and getting to the place where we need to get to quicker.”
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On the likelihood of the 31-year-old starting against Sunderland, he added: “I need to probably sit down with him a little bit more. We've got his data for over the last few months in terms of his loading and what he's done. I mean, it'll be a tough one to go and push him straight into the Premier League after obviously not having a lot of football.
“In saying that, he’s an incredible professional whose every testing he's done with us since he's come in here has been right up there, so he's in a good place. But obviously, match speed and match tempo is probably something that might be missing.”
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