Exclusive: David Prutton drops Burnley, Zian Flemming opinion as £7m+ deal is struck | OneFootball

The Dutchman is now a permanent member of Scott Parker's squad.

David Prutton believes that the physicality of Zian Flemming could make the Dutchman a success in the Premier League for Burnley and justify their decision to sign him from Millwall.

Even though Flemming has been on loan with the Clarets since Deadline Day, it's widely known that the destination he'd end up at following the conclusion of the season would be Turf Moor.

Burnley agreed a deal with the Lions to take the 26-year-old on temporarily for this campaign, but included in the deal was an obligation to buy him for upwards of £7 million this summer, as per the South London Press.

This isn't the only player who Burnley have had to buy due to loan clauses. Jaidon Anthony, Marcus Edwards and Bashir Humphreys' respective loans from AFC Bournemouth, Sporting Lisbon and Chelsea have been made permanent following the Clarets winning promotion to the Premier League. The Sun has reported that the quartet will cost Burnley close to £40 million.

Zian Flemming backed to be a Premier League success for Burnley

Flemming's reported fee isn't a large percentage of that figure, and Prutton, an EFL presenter for Sky Sports and former player, believes that he will be worth what Scott Parker's side shelled out for him.

"Very much, well worth (it)" said Prutton on whether signing the Dutchman permanently was a good move for the Clarets. "I thought he led the line very, very well. He brings a physical presence to the forward line for Burnley, ably assisted by Josh Brownhill, who has been absolutely amazing, but Zian proved to be a good foil for the attacking intent from the wider parts of the pitch.

"There's plenty to like about him, and like I said - that big physical presence - they're going to need a bit of that in the Premier League. But that blinds what a good player he is with the ball at his feet, and a strong and willing runner in behind."

Scott Parker's style will boost Burnley's survival chances

With the trend that has been forming for Championship clubs going up to the Premier League over the past two seasons, where every one of them, including the Clarets, have come straight back down again, Burnley would take survival in the top flight next season no matter how scrappy or ugly it is.

This season hasn't produced the most eye-catching football that Turf Moor has ever seen. Yes, towards the end, the club's forwards started to fire a bit more, but they had a long, barren spell in 2024 which was not pretty.

There is no point in scoring tonnes of goals if you concede more, though - a message that was clearly sent out by Parker throughout the term. Burnley had a historically great unit at the back. With the fearsome triangle of CJ Egan-Riley, Maxime Esteve and James Trafford in the middle of it, it was incredibly hard for opponents to get past Burnley this season.

They only conceded 16 goals in 46 games which provided them with a brilliant base to consistently pick up points, even when they were struggling at the other end of the pitch.

This rock-solid defensive formula is proven to work for newly promoted Premier League sides; Burnley found out the hard way that Vincent Kompany's more free-flowing, modern system will get you trounced, more often than not, when you don't have the quality to pull it off at the highest level.

Keeping that core together won't be easy. There's plenty of interest in Esteve and Trafford especially. If they can carry over that resoluteness that Parker has instilled in them into the Premier League, they will have a much better chance of staying up than when Kompany was leading them.