Clarets striker Zian Flemming insists he will always put the team ahead of any personal preference.
The Dutch ace arrived at Burnley a few weeks into the start of last season from Millwall in an initial loan deal which turned permanent this summer for a reported £7m fee.
In his time at the New Den, the 26-year-old had impressed primarily in an attacking midfield role or in a withdrawn forward position.
Even asked to play out wide at times during his spell in South East London, Flemming struck 23 goals in 92 league and cup appearances.
Burnley's Zian Flemming has played as a lone striker for the vast majority of his time at Turf Moor so far Photographer Alex Dodd / CameraSport The EFL Sky Bet Championship - Preston North End v Burnley - Saturday 15th February 2025 - Deepdale - Preston World Copyright © 2025 CameraSport. All rights reserved. 43 Linden Ave. Countesthorpe. Leicester. England. LE8 5PG - Tel: +44 (0) 116 277 4147 - admin@camerasport.com - www.camerasport.complaceholder image
Burnley's Zian Flemming has played as a lone striker for the vast majority of his time at Turf Moor so far Photographer Alex Dodd / CameraSport The EFL Sky Bet Championship - Preston North End v Burnley - Saturday 15th February 2025 - Deepdale - Preston World Copyright © 2025 CameraSport. All rights reserved. 43 Linden Ave. Countesthorpe. Leicester. England. LE8 5PG - Tel: +44 (0) 116 277 4147 - [email protected] - www.camerasport.com
His arrival at Turf Moor saw him thrust into an out-and-out striker role by manager Scott Parker following an injury to Lyle Foster.
It was a position he, by and large, made his own for the rest of the season with Josh Brownhill predominantly deployed in the No.10 role behind the central striker.
The pair were the club’s leading goalscorers as the Clarets stormed to promotion to the Premier League, finishing second behind Leeds United on goal difference in the Championship.
Brownhill struck 18 times, four more than Flemming, who arguably scored the most memorable goal of the campaign when he netted the winner against Blackburn in the East Lancashire derby at Ewood Park.
Many Clarets supporters have suggested online and no doubt pontificated in clubs and pubs around Turf Moor as to whether Flemming’s actual best position is as a No.10.
And with Brownhill appearing to have left the Clarets, having failed to agree fresh terms, Flemming may now be afforded the opportunity to play in a more withdrawn role.
“I used to always play as a No.10 or nine-and-a-half, whatever you want to call it,” said Flemming.
"So close behind the striker; play off the striker.
"When I got here, the manager needed me to play as a striker but he wanted me to play as a striker who could drop in sometimes to midfield and create an extra man.
"So in that sense it is a similar role.
"I didn’t know that people wanted to see me there (in the No.10 role).
"For me, if I could pick, that would be my ideal position but it always depends on formation and the tactics the gaffer uses.”
Flemming certainly scored a wide variety of goals last season, including some which an out-and-out No.9 would have been proud of.
His diving header at the back post against Blackburn stands out but other goals scored with his head, such as away games against Hull City and Queens Park Rangers, showcase a player with an aerial threat.
However, his swerving piledriver at Norwich City along with the curling free-kick against Bristol City at Turf Moor illustrates a player with technical attributes.
"Early on in my career, I have played as a striker,” said Flemming who started out at PEC Zwolle before moving to fellow Eredivisie outfit Fortuna Sittard.
"I have been flipped especially in the first few years of my career. I have started games as a No.10 and then finished it as a striker and also the other way around.
"I am quite used to being flexible in that sense. I knew that I could play as a striker because I have done it before but when I started doing it again here at Burnley, it had been four or five years (since I played there).
"The past four or five years before, I had been playing as a No.10.”
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