Scott Parker will not get carried away after Burnley go top of the Championship

Posted Sunday, October 20, 2024 by PA

Burnley manager Scott Parker said being top of the Championship means nothing to him at this stage of the season after they beat Sheffield Wednesday 2-0 at Hillsborough.

Goals either side of half-time from Jaidon Anthony and Josh Brownhill were enough to send the Clarets two points ahead of Sunderland, who play on Sunday.

And while Parker was impressed with his side’s display, he will not be getting carried away with their position in the table.

Parker said: “I’m really pleased overall. This is a difficult place to come and I thought we started the game very well.

“I’m pleased with the general play but taking the three points is massive for us. Going forward we looked a real threat and we had some real opportunities to put the game away.

“We were positionally very good in the final third and we executed our chances well. The players have been working really hard on that.

“We started slowly in the second half but we grew into it and I thought we took control after our second went in. We could have taken a few more of our chances and put the game to bed.

“As a coach I’m really happy with the clean sheet. The defensive side of things isn’t as fashionable but we want a foundation to build on and that starts with the back line.

“It’s a long, hard season. Being top of the table means nothing to me yet. There’s so many more games ahead of us.

“We have so many new players with lots of new identities and talents. We have a brand new team – only eight or nine weeks old and the lads have done incredibly well so far.”

Sheffield Wednesday boss Danny Rohl wants his side to be more clinical.

Rohl said: “We created a lot of opportunities against a very well-organised team. We’ve seen in previous games Burnley don’t need many chances to score goals.

“The first goal is a mistake from our side. We know this but I will always support my players and we have to move on quickly.

“Ike (Ugbo) had a big chance with the header. These small moments are the difference at the moment. This is why Burnley are top of the league and we are where we are.

“We sometimes make the wrong decision in the last moments of our attack. In the final third, we’ve got to find a team-mate and be more clinical in front of goal.

“It’s difficult to take today. The performance wasn’t bad and when the performance is right it hurts to lose.

“It’s been a busy schedule and we may look to change the team. We will go again against Swansea on Tuesday.”