Scott Parker urged to avoid "detrimental" Burnley FC change that could cause "problems" | OneFootball

FLW's Burnley fan pundit has defended head coach Scott Parker amid criticisms of his style of play.

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more...

It has been an excellent season so far for Burnley in the Championship, but their style of play has come in for criticism at times this campaign.

Burnley are aiming to make an immediate return to the Premier League after suffering relegation from the top flight last season, and despite losing manager Vincent Kompany and a host of key players in the summer, they are currently in automatic promotion contention under head coach Scott Parker.

The Clarets are unbeaten in their last 18 league games, with their last defeat in the Championship coming all the way back in early November, and they currently sit third in the table, three points behind second-placed Sheffield United.

Burnley's success this season has been largely based on a remarkable defensive record, with Parker's men conceding just nine goals in their 31 league games so far, and after the 1-0 win at Southampton in the FA Cup on Saturday, they have kept 10 consecutive clean sheets in all competitions and a total of 23 shutouts during the campaign.

However, the Clarets have seriously struggled for goals at the other end of the pitch, and they have drawn 0-0 on 10 occasions already this season, but speaking last week, Parker passionately hit back at accusations that his side are boring.

Burnley fan pundit backs Scott Parker amid style of play frustration

When asked if Parker needs to adapt his style of play in order to achieve promotion, FLW's Burnley fan pundit Will Lancaster said that while he would like to see more entertainment from the Clarets at times, changing what has been a successful formula would be too much of a risk at this stage of the season.

"It's a tough one to put into words in terms of Scott Parker and his style of play," Will said.

"Obviously you can look on the one side at Leeds United, who are scoring, attacking at will and really putting teams to the sword, and Sunderland are in a similar boat.

"Whereas you've got Burnley and Sheffield United following a similar model to each other, except the one key difference, especially over the last few months, is that Sheffield United are starting to concede a little bit more and Burnley are continuing that excellent defensive record.

"Burnley haven't conceded a goal in all competitions for a month now, and it's nine games since they last conceded in the Championship.

"There is an argument that they should switch up from that pragmatic approach, but I just feel that as boring and laboured as it has been in recent weeks, as you get closer to the run-in and the end of the season, there's going to be a lot more games that are end-to-end and ebb and flow a little bit more.

"If Burnley can keep that pragmatic approach and continue shutting teams out, then those points on the board could be crucial by the end of the season.

"I think there's an acknowledgment among the fan base that this is the way that Parker plays, and risking that by changing the playing style would probably be detrimental at this stage.

"If you try and change it up over the next three or four matches and there's a bit of an imbalance throughout the side, then it could lead to all sorts of problems, and by the time you actually start to score goals, you might be behind in the promotion race.

"I think we're doing just fine, obviously we would like to score more goals, but I think at this stage, we've just got to keep doing what we're doing."

Alan Pace did not solve key Burnley problem in January

It is fair to say that Burnley have been tough to watch at times this season, but their defensive record is incredible, and it has provided them with a solid platform on which to build their promotion push.

Parker deserves huge credit for making the Clarets so difficult to beat, but his side's lack of goals could prove costly in their pursuit of automatic promotion, and with that in mind, you have to question why owner Alan Pace did not spend big on a new striker in January.

The loan signing of Marcus Edwards from Sporting Lisbon is a huge coup for Burnley, and just as he did against Southampton on Saturday, he will help to provide more of a creative spark, but without a prolific number nine up front, it is difficult to see Parker's men finishing above Leeds or Sheffield United.