West Ham's Scott Parker explains why he needed time out after Burnley

Former Burnley boss Scott Parker admits West Ham might have been the only club to tempt him back into a job.

The 46-year-old returns to his former club to succeed Nuno Espirito Santo, having been out of work since leaving Turf Moor back in April.

Parker admits it was a difficult two years at Burnley, where he went from the highs of Championship promotion to the lows of Premier League relegation.

“I came out of Burnley at the back end of last season and I was probably in a position where I wanted to take some oxygen for a little bit,” Parker said, after being unveiled as the Hammers’ new head coach.

“It was a tough couple of years. One year with the promotion and then the other year which was certainly pretty difficult in certain moments.

“I just felt that was the best decision for me and probably the best decision for the club that we parted ways.

“I don’t know whether I’m sitting at any other football club in this position if it’s not West Ham, that’s the bottom line really.

“My energy levels, my enthusiasm, my desire and my passion is running through, it’s absolutely running through.

“The minute I had conversations that this was possible…that’s why I’m here, that’s why I want to be here.”

While West Ham have under-performed to date, sitting eighth in the Championship table, Parker is confident he can add a fourth Championship promotion to his CV.

“I’m very confident,” he added. “I’ve been in this division three times and I’ve got out of this division three times.

“This is a tough division, there’s no denying it, and there’s no player on a piece of paper that gets you out of it.

“You can have the best players or what is perceived as the best players, but this is a tough, tough division.

“I will use every ounce of my experiences and every ounce of my knowledge from the three times I’ve done it previously to have an understanding of what we’re going to need to bring.

“Of course, this is a very, very good squad which is more than capable of getting back in the Premier League, which is everyone’s wish. I know that full well.

“But there’s work to go into that, for sure. My experiences and my knowledge of the three clubs I’ve been at to get out of this division, I’m going to try and pour every bit into the minute I step into this building.”