Barnsley are reportedly in ‘advanced talks’ to sign Gerhard Struber as their new manager to replace the departed Daniel Stendel, according to Andy Giddings on Twitter. 

The Tykes have been on a managerial hunt ever since the parting company with former manager Daniel Stendel in early October, with the side currently on a torrid winless run stretching back to the opening day when they saw off Fulham 1-0 at Oakwell. The side sit bottom of the Championship on just nine points and five points behind 21st-placed Luton Town and safety. 

Since the departure of Stendel, Adam Murray has taken caretaker charge of the club while the managerial search takes place and has seen some somewhat unfortunate results such as draws to West Brom and Bristol City where they could have made their early domination count for better results, but didn’t.

With the international break providing the Barnsley board adequate time to line up the right replacement, they appear to be moving towards one with current Wolfsberger manager Gerhard Struber in ‘advanced talks’ with the club, according to Andy Giddings on Twitter.

Here, we take a look at three knock-on effects for Barnsley that this appointment could have…

Kick-start their season

As mentioned previously, Barnsley are on a horrific run of form with only one win all season and sitting rock-bottom in the Championship. This appointment could be just what the squad need to jump-start their season and finally kick on to some positive results.

There is always the idea of the ‘new manager bounce’ that is seen at clubs where a new manager comes in with fresh ideas to revitalise the squad into some quickfire results. This could be the case at Barnsley who are in desperate need of doing so as soon as possible.

Struber has great pedigree as a manager already despite being just 42-years-old so he could be able to get this Barnsley team up and running before long.

Wise recruitment could follow

One major reason for Stendel struggling in the job was from the poor recruitment process the club undertook in the summer, selling major first-team players and replacing them with young, untested players for modest prices.

This transfer policy left Stendel fighting an uphill battle from the outset and it was only a matter of time before he could go no further with the squad. Gerhard Struber would arrive at Barnsley with around a month to assess his squad and resources before the January transfer window, to get a feel of what players he might need to mount of push for survival.

It builds some continuity

Murray has done a decent job as caretaker manager but results he was looking for would only help keep the squad buoyant while he was there, rather than building on a project set out by everyone at Oakwell.

With the potential appointment of Struber, Barnsley can build a team in his image and look beyond this season. As they have clearly taken their time in making the best possible appointment, it would be naive then not to give said manager enough time to implement his philosophy and recruitment on the squad.