Scott Parker's Marcus Edwards' future verdict as Sky Sports pundit admits 'surprise' Man Utd didn't gamble

Scott Parker admitted he wasn’t surprised with talk over the long-term future of Burnley loan star Marcus Edwards after one pundit suggested the winger could have been a transfer option for Premier League giants Manchester United.

Parker worked with the former England youth international during his time coaching within the academy setup at Tottenham Hotspur and has kept a close eye on Edwards’ progress ever since. The winger left Spurs on a free transfer during the summer of 2019 to join Portuguese club Vitoria Guimaraes before making a big money move to Sporting CP just under two and half years later.

Edwards produced a fine return of 24 goals and 26 assists in 120 appearances for the Primeira Liga giants and the vast majority came under current Red Devils head coach Ruben Amorim. The 26-year-old winger had been linked with a return to England on a number of occasions in recent seasons and it was Parker who made a firm move in January after snapping up Edwards on loan until the end of the season. Reports in Portugal have suggested that is close to becoming a permanent switch at the end of the season and Edwards will hope that will come on the back of a successful push into the Premier League.

However, one former Premier League manager and current Sky Sports pundit has claimed he is surprised Amorim has not made a move to reunite with the lively winger since moving to Old Trafford.

What did Tim Sherwood say about Burnley winger Marcus Edwards?

Speaking to Sky Sports, the former Tottenham Hotspur manager said: "I was shocked when he left the club (Spurs). I felt he needed a little bit more time because he was small. But perhaps he ran out of patience and wanted to go and further his own career. He went to Portugal and it worked out really well for him. Now he's back at Burnley and it was a huge coup for them in the Championship. Scott [Parker] used to come and watch a lot of sessions and did some himself when I was at Spurs. He would have seen Marcus then and would have seen the talent that was there. He's obviously got a very good memory!

"He enjoyed his time at Sporting under Ruben Amorim. Man Utd have got some worse players than Marcus Edwards at the minute, let me tell you that. I'm a little bit surprised that, considering the money we're talking about, that Ruben didn't have a little bit of a gamble on him. Perhaps they had players in the squad they didn't want to block the pathway of. But he knows the boy inside-out.

What did Scott Parker say about talk of Marcus Edwards’ future?

Transfer speculation over current members of the Burnley squad is nothing new after several of Parker’s players were linked with moves elsewhere in recent months. The Clarets boss admitted he is no longer surprised with such talk after his side have impressed throughout the season and enthused over the impact Edwards has made since joining the Clarets during the January transfer window.

Speaking at his pre-match press conference ahead of Friday’s trip to Watford, Parker said: “We had that at the beginning of the season and you always have that if you’ve got quality and you’re a team producing what we have produced over the course of this year. Of course, you will have players that are attractive to other clubs, we are in a profession where there is a window that opens twice a year as well, so again, speculation or hearsay, it doesn’t surprise you one bit. Marcus, I see it with others in the squad as well.

“Marcus has brought a quality in the final third for us, he’s scored some goals, he attracts players, opposition are wary in terms of attracting two or three and we open up spaces elsewhere. He’s got individual quality as well, hence why we brought him here and I understood what Marcus would bring to us and us as a team. I knew he’d enhance us. He’s definitely been a large part and I think the whole team as well, our general improvement in the final third and as an attacking force has improved no end in terms of us understanding what we’ve been working on as well, I’ve seen it first-hand over the last few weeks. So while Marcus has added that, I do think as a group and as a team, our general structure in terms of attacking has improved massively.”

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