Barnsley will retain faith in youth as they build for the future

Barnsley are not about to lose faith with their young squad, according to assistant head coach Andreas Winkler.
Andreas WinklerAndreas Winkler
Andreas Winkler

The Reds team is full of exciting promise, but they learned a harsh lesson when they crashed to a 4-2 defeat at League One promotion rivals Sunderland on Tuesday.

They shipped three goals in 13 first-half minutes and boss Daniel Stendel accused them of being over-awed at the Stadium of Light.

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They have performed well overall this season, remaining in the promotion mix and also gunning for a place in the third round of the FA Cup with a visit to Southend.

Winker insists that with the January transfer window approaching the Tykes will not be looking to add any experienced heads to their squad.

'I don't think about that,' the German said. 'I am 100 per cent with this philosophy and we go with these lads.

'We think we have really good lads, in every match who can challenge with every team in the league.

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'Sometimes in matches like Sunderland it is a problem. We were a little bit intimidated at 1-0, and then it was soon 2-0.

'In these periods our squad didn't stick to our plan, not as a team. But this can happen against another side with lots of experience, lots of quality.

'On one hand sometimes it can be a problem that we don't have a leader who can say, 'Come on, let's go, let's stick together, let's stay compact', but on the other hand we can play a second like that with young lads.'

Barnsley's fixture list has been gruelling in recent weeks as they compete on three fronts.

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Along with their league commitments, they have also got through to the knockout stages of the Checkatrade Trophy and face a long trip down to Essex to face Southend, hoping to be in the hat for a potentially exciting FA Cup third-round draw.

Winkler says the are giving the competition their full focus and wants to get the job done at Roots Hall.

'We have a young squad, lots of players who can be in the first XI,' he added. 'We don't differentiate between FA Cup or league match, we will show our best performance.

'We are 100 per cent going for the next round. It will be a tough match. I don't think about a replay, but if it is a draw we take the second match. We take it as it is.'