Matt Scrafton's verdict on Burnley's 3-2 defeat to West Ham
Scott Parker spoke of his delight at the performance of his Burnley players during their defeat to Chelsea – but with one major caveat.
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25 photos of Burnley fans arriving at Turf Moor for Premier League fixture again...](https://www.burnleyexpress.net/sport/football/25-photos-of-burnley-fans-arriving-at-turf-moor-for-premier-league-fixture-against-chelsea-5413263 "25 photos of Burnley fans arriving at Turf Moor for Premier League fixture against Chelsea")
The Clarets pushed Enzo Maresca’s side all the way as they once again proved they can compete with the biggest and best the Premier League has to offer.
But having questioned his players following the defeat to West Ham prior to the international break, Parker was pleased to see a positive response.
“I'm very, very pleased with the performance,” he said. “I say that lightly because obviously we've not got anything out of the game.
“But during the first half, we were brilliant. We're playing against a quality team here in Chelsea and at any moment they can really hurt teams. I think you've seen that over the course of the season.
“But I thought we were every bit we needed to be. We were a forceful team, we showed intent about us, we were aggressive, we were brave.
Scott Parker urges the Burnley fans to make more noise during the game against Chelsea. Photo: Kelvin Lister-Stuttardplaceholder image
Scott Parker urges the Burnley fans to make more noise during the game against Chelsea. Photo: Kelvin Lister-Stuttard
“If I’m being slightly critical, maybe we can look at the half chances we have in the first half that maybe one falls to us or goes in or the final little bit of detail.
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“But then the second half, of course, that changes a little bit. While of course, in the perfect scenario and the perfect world that we all live in in this current day, that you come in and you'd love to go: ‘let's just replicate that for the next 45 minutes and it'll be an all round great performance’. That's not the case.
“There's a man that's 20 metres away in another changing room with a group of players changing things and the momentum of the game changed a little bit second half, for sure.
“But I thought we dealt with that really well. We didn't let the game run away from us. We didn't make poor decisions. Because before you know it, you're two or three goals down in the Premier League.
“If you're asking a team like us to go and score three or four goals every week to win or to get points, then that's going to be physically impossible. But we stay in it with pure diligence.
“We miss arguably our biggest chance with Flem [Zian Flemming] when he chests it down, which could have taken the game to 1-1. It's probably a different conversation we're having here, depending on how it ends.
“But overall, I'm really pleased. But again, I need to reiterate, I say that lightly because of course we're disappointed. We are.
“But from the week we've had, the level of criticism at times I've put on this group this week, they reacted in a brilliant way and I'm immensely pleased.”
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