Scott Parker facing Zian Flemming decision at Burnley FC | OneFootball

Scott Parker must consider tweaking Zian Flemming's position to get Burnley scoring more.

Burnley have had a positive start to the season, with Scott Parker’s side sitting fourth in the Championship.

The Clarets are four points away from the automatic promotion places, and with just under a third of the season played, Parker will feel his side can be in the mix for a top two finish come May.

However, to do that, Burnley are going to have to score more goals, as their end product in the past few months is a growing concern.

Burnley’s goalscoring issues

A return of 18 goals in 15 games is below what you’d expect for a side chasing promotion, but that becomes an even bigger worry when you take into account that Parker’s men scored nine in their first two games.

Another issue is that the stats suggest it’s not a case of Burnley being wasteful in front of goal.

That’s because their xG this season is 14.9, which ranks 21st in the league, so they’re actually overperforming with the chances that come their way.

Scott Parker must get more out of Zian Flemming

Therefore, it would suggest there is a problem with the setup and the way the team functions in the final third, so it’s on the manager to rectify that.

And, a key issue is Zian Flemming, with the summer signing only finding the net once and recording one assist in eight games since his arrival from Millwall.

In fairness, Flemming hasn’t been playing in his best position, as the Dutchman flourished as an attacking midfielder at The Den, whereas he has been playing as a number nine for Burnley recently.

Parker will rightly point out that injuries have forced his hand to a degree, as Lyle Foster’s absence has robbed Burnley of their best attacker.

But, with the likes of Jay Rodriguez and Andreas Hountondji in the squad, there are other options, even if the duo haven’t fully convinced either, but they can do enough to ensure Burnley get by until January, when a new striker is sure to be the number one priority.

It seems apparent for the balance of the side, and to get the best out of Flemming, the ex-Millwall man needs to revert to a number ten.

Zian Flemming can fire Burnley to promotion

Whilst his second season was tougher, Flemming found the net 15 times in his first Championship season, and that was for a Lions side that weren’t known for their attacking prowess.

That was Flemming at his best, as he scored all types of goals, which was the reason Burnley were convinced to agree a deal worth an eventual £7m for the 26-year-old.

By starting deeper, the ex-Ajax youngster doesn’t have to play with his back to goal as much, and he is harder to mark as he makes late runs into the box.

At the moment, he has been a focal point, but he lacks the pace to really stretch a defence in behind, and he doesn’t have the physicality to dominate powerful centre-backs.

That has made Burnley easy to defend against, and it’s prevented Flemming from using his intelligence and clever movement to roam and find space.

As well as that, he would be more involved in the build-up, and the likes of Luca Koleosho and Jaidon Anthony could benefit from Flemming in a deeper role, as they may get quality service in better areas.

There was a lot of excitement when Burnley signed Flemming, and it was easy to see why it was seen as a coup, but the reality is that it hasn’t worked so far, with the team managing seven goals in the eight games he has played.

That may force Parker into a rethink, and building around the recent recruit could be the way to go.

By dropping Flemming into his preferred attacking midfield role, he could start showing the form that saw him earn a move to Turf Moor - and he could crucially solve Burnley’s problems in front of goal.