'Probably be the case' - Scott Parker drops Burnley selection hint for FA Cup clash with Preston North End
PNE host Lancashire rivals Burnley in round five of the FA Cup on Saturday
Scott Parker has suggested changes will be made to his Burnley team for this weekend’s trip to Preston North End.
The Clarets boss takes his side to Deepdale for the second time in a fortnight. After goalless draws in both league meetings there must be a winner on this occasion, as the two Lancashire rivals lock horns for a place in the FA Cup quarter-finals.
Burnley have been dealt a injury blow to Bashir Humphreys, who has been a regular in an incredibly resilient Clarets back line all season. Jordan Beyer, Aaron Ramsey and Mike Tresor are expected to remain out but Parker has the rest of his squad in good shape.
One player who could be brought into the XI is winger Manuel Benson - the Belgian returned from a lengthy injury recently and scored a wonderful goal last time out against Sheffield Wednesday.
Former PNE midfielder Josh Brownhill is another pushing for a start, while the likes of Jonjo Shelvey, Jeremy Sarmiento and Joe Worrall were all substitutes in Burnley’s previous match.
Parker made 11 changes as the Clarets saw off Reading in round four and eight for their victory over Southampton in the third round.
When asked if he’ll adopt a similar approach, Parker said: “Yeah, that will probably be the case. We'll rotate a little bit, obviously use some of the squad. It gives us an opportunity to do that.
“We have a game so close after as well, we have a league fixture on Tuesday, so we'll probably rotate a little bit.
“It’s definitely about continuing momentum. We have a bigger squad here and everyone's working very, very hard to get minutes and get in the team.
“The work that goes on, I see those boys coming in or the ones who have come in have done very, very well - and I don’t see that being any different this weekend.”
“We’ll go there as strong as we can.”
Parker added: “I think, as always, the league is probably fundamentally our priority this year. But in saying that, it's a competition that we want to do extremely well in.
“We have an opportunity at this present moment, against good opposition. We could go and get through this round (which) takes us into the realms of maybe seeing something.
“As always, we'll go there as strong as we can. We want to get through this round, put in a good performance and stay in the competition.”
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