Scott Parker expecting tough Lazio test in Burnley's final pre-season friendly
Burnley are gearing up for their one and only Turf Moor pre-season friendly this week.
Fresh off last weekend’s 1-0 defeat to Stoke City, Scott Parker’s side welcome Italian side Lazio to East Lancashire on Saturday (3pm kick-off).
The higher-profile encounter allows the Clarets boss to test his players against top opposition just a week out from their Premier League opener at Tottenham.
After being on the road for all of their pre-season friendlies to take, Parker is looking forward to getting back to Turf Moor.
“It's been a tough few weeks, so we'll freshen up over this next week,” he told the Burnley Express.
"We'll go into that game, prepping that game for a week out from the start of the season.
"I’m looking forward to playing in front of our home fans at our stadium for the first time in a long while, and we’ll be facing good opposition, so it'll be a good test for us.
“I'm looking forward to seeing the lads in action as well.”
The Lazio game isn’t the only encounter Burnley face on Saturday. It’s understood another behind-closed-doors outing will take place at Gawthorpe on Saturday morning to ensure as many players as possible in Parker’s bloated squad get minutes under their belts.
Following Josh Laurent’s red card at Stoke, the midfielder will have to serve a one-match suspension after being dismissed for two yellows against his former club. But, unusually, Laurent can serve the suspension for the training ground game, meaning he’s available to face Lazio as usual.
Both Bashir Humphreys and Zeki Amdouni will miss out through injury, while Connor Roberts and Zian Flemming are working their way back from knocks – although Roberts did feature in last weekend’s in-house game, while Flemming is now back in training.
As for the opposition, Lazio finished seventh in Serie A last season under the management of Maurizio Sarri. Their squad features the likes of Mattéo Guendouzi, Fisayo Dele-Bashiru and Pedro.
Burnley’s pre-season results
1-0 win against Fleetwood (Marcus Edwards)
1-1 draw against Wolves (Jacob Bruun Larsen)
2-0 win against Huddersfield Town (Tommy McDermott and Joe Westley)
2-2 draw against Shrewsbury Town (Marcus Edwards x2)
1-0 defeat to Stoke City