'Not even comparable' - Scott Parker makes Burnley claim ahead of Sunderland clash
Sunderland play Burnley at Turf Moor on Friday evening
Burnley manager Scott Parker has insisted that his side are in a “much better place” than they were when they last played Sunderland in the Championship.
The Clarets host the Black Cats at Turf Moor on Friday evening, and will be looking to make amends for the 1-0 defeat they suffered at the Stadium of Light back in August - a match that came in the midst of a period of widespread upheaval for Parker and his squad.
Since then, however, Burnley have established themselves as genuine promotion contenders, and have still only conceded nine goals across their 26 league outings so far this term. They also sit two points clear of Sunderland in the table, heading into this weekend’s contest. And taking all of that into account, Parker is adamant that his team will pose a much improved proposition to Regis Le Bris’ visitors when the two meet this time around.
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Speaking in a press conference, he said: “It's not even comparable where we currently are as a team and as a group compared to then. We were at the height of things, like I've mentioned before, which were pretty unprecedented at that moment in time. Things that probably weren’t out there in the open, but clearly we were in a bit of a state in that fixture.
“Where we've moved from, from that point to now, is not even comparable. A tough game again on Friday night like it was back then, but certainly I feel that we're in a better place. Certainly psychologically as a group we're in a much better place, and fundamentally probably in a much better place in terms of where we've come from and how we've developed along the way.”
Parker also took the time to praise Sunderland for their own achievements so far this term, but was quick to suggest that Burnley will be well-placed to counteract the Black Cats’ notable attacking threat on home soil.
He added: “They're a very good side. I think they've proven that over the course of this season as well. Really well coached team and have done remarkably well. They've got individuals and pace in their team that we need to be fully aware of and we will be. “We face similar teams and similar qualities and we've dealt with that pretty well. As always, we'll approach this game and try and be as dominant as we can, and try and take everything we can out of this game and try and nullify them to the best we can.”