Burnley FC: Cardiff City and Luton Town developments make poor reading for Scott Parker now - View | OneFootball

Luton Town and Cardiff City's recent form has changed the perception of Burnley's early season victories against them.

It has been a decent start to life back in the Championship for Burnley.

Burnley were relegated from the Premier League last season after just one year in the top flight, but they look to be in a strong position to bounce back at the first attempt.

The Clarets suffered a huge blow when manager Vincent Kompany departed for Bayern Munich in May, but two-time Championship promotion winner Scott Parker was announced as his replacement, and it was a busy summer as the 44-year-old rebuilt his squad, with 13 new players arriving at Turf Moor during the course of the transfer window.

Burnley were held to a frustrating 0-0 home draw by Lancashire rivals Preston North End before the international break, but they are now unbeaten in their last six games, and they currently sit third in the table, just one point behind leaders Sunderland and second-placed Sheffield United.

However, while the Clarets have been difficult to beat in recent weeks, their form has declined slightly after their outstanding start to the season that saw them register emphatic victories over Luton Town and Cardiff City.

Luton Town and Cardiff City struggles will be frustrating for Scott Parker

In what was billed as a clash between two of the promotion favourites, Burnley secured a comprehensive 4-1 win over fellow newly-relegated side Luton Town at Kenilworth Road on the opening weekend.

In truth, the margin of victory could have been even greater, and after an incredibly dominant performance from the Clarets, many began tipping them to win the Championship title this season.

The excitement around Burnley increased even further when they beat Cardiff City 5-0 at Turf Moor in their second game of the campaign, and while the scoreline did flatter them slightly on this occasion, there is no doubt that it was another statement victory from Parker's side that sent a clear message to the rest of the league.

However, Luton have failed to live up to expectations this season, and after winning just two of their first nine games, they currently sit one place above the relegation zone, while the situation is even worse for Cardiff.

The Bluebirds picked up just one point from their opening six games, resulting in the sacking of Erol Bulut last month, and although their fortunes have improved slightly under caretaker manager Omer Riza, they remain bottom of the table.

Nobody could have predicted how much Luton and Cardiff would go on to underperform this season, but their struggles do make Burnley's early season victories look slightly less impressive, and the Clarets have been unable to replicate that form against stronger opposition.

While Parker's men are unbeaten in six games, they have not scored from open play in their last three matches, with Josh Brownhill's penalty against Plymouth Argyle the only time they have found the back of the net during that time.

Burnley have conceded just four league goals this season, so they have remained defensively solid, but their lack of attacking output in recent weeks will be a concern for Parker.

Burnley should still be optimistic despite recent goalscoring problems

In Parker's defence, of the players who scored in Burnley's opening games of the season against Luton and Cardiff, five are no longer at the club - Wilson Odobert, Dara O'Shea, Vitinho, Zeki Amdouni and Johann Berg Gudmundsson.

They were not the only players to depart Turf Moor in the latter stages of the transfer window, with the likes of Sander Berge, Anass Zaroury and Wout Weghorst also moving on, so Parker has lost a lot of quality from his squad and his new signings are still settling in.

Burnley's excellent defensive record provides them with an incredibly strong platform on which to build, and when players such as Jeremy Sarmiento, Jaidon Anthony, Zian Flemming, Luca Koleosho and Lyle Foster find their form, they could be difficult to stop.

It should also be remembered Parker's promotion-winning teams at Fulham and Bournemouth were not prolific scorers and instead took a more controlled, possession-based approach to the game, and the Clarets have exhibited similar characteristics in recent weeks.

Burnley are unlikely to be as exciting to watch as they were when they won the Championship title two seasons ago under Kompany, but that will not matter if they achieve the same outcome, and they are certainly one of the main promotion contenders at this point.