Burnley FC: Scott Parker may have stumbled upon a Jonjo Shelvey alternative | OneFootball

Joe Bauress' performance against Reading will have given Scott Parker some food for thought with Jonjo Shelvey training with the club

Although it looked like attacking reinforcements coming into Turf Moor would dominate the headlines in January, it seems that Scott Parker is also keen to sort out his midfield in this window.

Football League World exclusively revealed that Jonjo Shelvey was training with Burnley last week, and while the former Newcastle man wouldn't necessarily have to be signed in January, given he's a free agent, a deal would need to be wrapped up sooner or later to be attractive to Shelvey.

Midfield has been a problem area for Parker this season, who has tried out several different combinations to find something that worked, and while most were unsuccessful, he now seems to have settled on a trio of Josh's which works.

Parker tends to go with Josh Cullen and Josh Laurent anchoring the midfield, while Josh Brownhill plays in a more advanced role, but it's in those two deeper positions where the Clarets aren't particularly flush with options.

Brownhill has been known to fill in there, but it's widely accepted that isn't his best position, so it's no real surprise to see Parker exploring different midfield options.

Scott Parker may not need to shop around to find his midfield answer

Although the FA Cup can be seen as a distraction with Burnley in the middle of a promotion race, it provided Parker a perfect chance to take a look at some of his fringe players, and one in particular will have caught his eye.

Eighteen-year-old Joe Bauress stepped into the midfield in Saturday's 3-1 success against Reading and performed admirably throughout, posing the question, is signing Shelvey really necessary with a youngster capable of stepping up?

For those with no knowledge of who Bauress was watching him play against Reading would've thought he was a seasoned professional, such was his competency in the middle of the pitch.

Bauress did everything you'd expect of the modern day number six, dropping in deep to dictate play, and his ability to manipulate the ball and bounce the Clarets out of tight spaces was a sight to behold.

It was telling how highly he must be thought of that his teammates put so much trust in him to give him the ball in those tight areas knowing that he could deal with it.

His performance on Saturday certainly poses some food for thought for Parker, who could look to involve him a little more towards the end of the season.

Jonjo Shelvey has one key quality that Joe Bauress lacks

Ultimately, in football, you can't put a price on experience, especially in the position Burnley find themselves in this season pushing for promotion.

The problem for Parker comes in the fact that he can't necessarily throw Bauress into a promotion battle and expect him to take to it like a duck to water.

Although Shelvey certainly doesn't have youth on his side, he's been there and done it all in the game, winning the Championship, and it's no secret that Parker is a fan of experienced heads, signing Joe Worrall, John Egan and Ashley Barnes this season, who have all been promoted before.

That experience within a dressing room towards the end of the season could prove invaluable, particularly from someone who knows what it takes to get over the line in the Championship promotion race.

That's not to say Shelvey doesn't have quality either, but with no re-sale value, Burnley fans may argue that giving Bauress a look-in makes more sense than signing the ex-Nottingham Forest man.