Scott Parker outlines Burnley's Christmas plans ahead of potentially season-defining promotion clashes

Scott Parker’s men take on seventh-placed Watford at Turf Moor on Saturday before facing fellow foes Sheffield United, Middlesbrough and Blackburn Rovers, who are also in the mix at the top end of the Championship.

Another home tie against Stoke City is also part of a hectic schedule on New Year’s Day as the Clarets play five times in the space of just two weeks.

Given the full-on nature of Burnley’s traditional Christmas period, there will be little time to rest for Parker’s squad.

“We will prepare on Christmas Day and we will be overnight as a team as well because we’ve got an away game in Sheffield on Boxing Day,” Burnley’s head coach revealed.

“I’m fully aware of Christmas and the time it brings for everyone to be around their family, so we will try and manage that the best we can, but with the games we’ve got we need to prepare and crack on.”

Parker added: “There’s some big games coming up and we’ve faced big games throughout the year. We’re now getting to the part of the season and the part of the schedule where there’s some big fixtures coming up in a short space of time.

“It excites me and I’m looking forward to that. As a group we’ve done extremely well up to this part of the season, where we’re almost coming up to halfway. But these big games are the ones we want to be involved in.

“We’ve got some tough fixtures coming up and none more so than the weekend against a very good Watford side. Then we’ll go into a period where there’s some big games, with a local derby thrown in there too.”

Given the sheer number of games in such a short period of time, Parker says it’s inevitable he will have to look to rotate his side as much as he can.

“You’re definitely looking ahead a little bit, just as we did recently when we had three games in a week,” he added.

“In my head, you’re always trying to manage situations or manage the squad. The games are so fast and so physical now it’s probably unrealistic to think a team can stay together for three or four games on the trot.

“It’s always in my head when you’re looking at a short period of time between fixtures to look ahead and how things may look down the road due to suspensions or injuries or maybe a bit of balance to freshen things up.”

While the fixture schedule ramps up in England, clubs on the continent will instead be preparing to put up their feet.

On the prospect of introducing a winter break in this country, Parker said: “It’s something you definitely have to bear in mind as a coach [the number of games in a short period of time.

“When you have new players coming from overseas it’s obviously very different for them because this time of year is when those players would normally not be working.

“I’m probably mixed. My professional head says it’s a lot of games in a real short space of time and a break around here would be good, or certainly the fixtures and the scheduling of that.

“Another side of me says it’s also an incredible time of the year. Everyone is together and for a large number of families this period is about football, Boxing Day games and the schedule in and around it where there’s practically football on every day for five or six days.

“It was also a large part for me as a player, so I’m used to it. Now as a coach, we will get the team to the best place we can.”