Burnley Manager Scott Parker Leaves With One Year Left

Burnley manager Scott Parker left the club on Thursday morning despite having a year left on his contract. Burnley said Parker and the board held discussions and mutually agreed that his time at Turf Moor would conclude.

Michael Jackson at Turf Moor

Michael Jackson, a member of Parker’s staff, has been appointed interim head coach and will oversee Burnley’s remaining steps back to the Championship. For supporters and staff, the change lands after a season in which Burnley won just four Premier League matches and conceded goals at a rate of two a game.

Parker’s Burnley Record

Parker arrived with a strong Championship record behind him. He led Burnley out of the second tier and into the Premier League last season, when they lost just two of 46 matches, went unbeaten at home, kept 30 clean sheets and produced 20 combined 1-0 wins and scoreless draws.

That is the friction point in his spell at the club: the same coach who delivered promotion and one of the strongest Championship campaigns in recent memory could not keep Burnley up. Parker has now overseen three promotions and two relegations across a six-year career as a head coach, and his own words reflected the split. He said, “It has been an immense privilege to lead this great club over the past two years” and “I have enjoyed every moment of our journey together, but feel that now is the right time for both parties to move in a different direction.”

Burnley must now finish the season with Jackson in charge while deciding on its next manager. Parker’s exit also closes the book on a two-year stay at Turf Moor that began with promotion and ended after the club had already been relegated back to the Championship.