Scott Parker makes 'confident' claim about out-of-contract Burnley pair as promotion brings transfer clarity
Burnley’s promotion with two games to spare has given them some much-needed certainty on off-the-field matters.
That’s according to Scott Parker, who claims he’s “confident” that CJ Egan-Riley and Josh Brownhill will put pen to paper on new deals.
The pair, who have both played an integral role in Burnley’s return to the Premier League, are currently at risk of leaving for nothing at the end of their contracts this summer.
But now Burnley know they will be playing their football in the top flight next season, that’s given them some clarity as they return to the negotiating table.
“They're ongoing conversations we've been having now over the last few months,” Parker revealed.
“These are conversations that we'll keep engaging with. Now we all know and there's real clarity in what next year will bring and where we're going to be, hopefully we can get some conclusions on both of them.”
When asked how confident he is the pair will put pen to paper, Parker added: “Yeah, I'm confident.
“I know that both the players we're talking about here have absolutely loved this year and they've been vital cogs of what we've done.
“You obviously never know, but hopefully we can try and get to a point where we'll have a bit more clarity on that.”
Confirmation of Burnley’s promotion also means that loanees Bashir Humphreys, Jaidon Anthony, Marcus Edwards and Zian Flemming will all become permanent signings.
Humphreys and Flemming were due to stay at Turf Moor whatever happened this season, while Anthony and Edwards would become full-time Clarets in the eventuality of promotion.
It’s given the Clarets a welcome head start ahead of their summer transfer business. Compare that to two years ago when the likes of Taylor Harwood-Bellis, Ian Maatsen and Nathan Tella all went elsewhere after helping Vincent Kompany’s men reach the Premier League.
“That's probably been key,” Parker said. “Having a bit of continuity going into next year with some of the players that have been working with me now for a year, or for three or four months.
“That speeds up the process for next year, definitely, that you're not having to do a bulk of work with new players coming in.
“I'm pleased that people like Jaidon and Marcus, Marcus less so, but these players that have been around my training and understand me a little bit more, that process is a little bit quicker.”
While Burnley already have a solid base to work from, they’ll inevitably look to bring in Premier League quality this summer.
But given the hard work that has gone in to create a positive culture among the squad, Parker is wary of hitting the right balance.
“It will be tricky,” he admitted.
“That would be the next challenge, certainly, for us as an organisation in terms of getting that balance right. We'll try our hardest to do that.
“I think we all appreciate, and I certainly do, every single one of these players this year and what they've done, what they've brought. But it's something that I'm conscious of.”