Alex Mowatt was an extremely important player for Barnsley in League One last season.

The 24-year-old started every one of their 46 games in the third tier, scoring eight goals and providing six assists as Daniel Stendel's side won automatic promotion.

The midfielder played an influential role as Barnsley got their new season of to the perfect start with a 1-0 win against Fulham on the opening day at Oakwell, but suffered an injury in the defeat at Sheffield Wednesday last weekend.

Mowatt had to be substituted with a muscle injury during the second half of the 2-0 loss at Hillsborough and missed the Carabao Cup exit to Carlisle in midweek.

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Barnsley assistant manager Dale Tonge admitted at his press conference yesterday that the midfielder is struggling with his injury and that he is likely to miss the home game against Charlton at the weekend.

The club are still waiting on assessment results and are unsure whether he will be out for a short-term or long-term spell.

Barnsley fans now face an anxious wait to find out and will be hoping that Mowatt will only be out for a short while, as he will be key to their chances of success this season.

If Barnsley are to do anything more than simply survive in the Championship this season, it is so important that they are able to keep their key players fit.

Mowatt is a driving force for Barnsley in midfield and his importance to the team cannot be underestimated.

He has already got some experience in the Championship and he could have an very important role to play for the team this season.

Barnsley have got some very good players but Mowatt is so crucial to the way the team play under Stendel.

Now that the transfer window has closed, Barnsley are unable to bring in a replacement for Mowatt and it would put a lot of pressure on the likes of Cameron McGeehan to step up in his absence, if he is out for a long time.

Barnsley have got what it takes to survive in the Championship this season and it would not be that surprising to see them secure their safety relatively early in the campaign.

Perhaps there will be some Barnsley fans who are quietly confident of the team achieving a top-half finish this term or maybe even consider them as outsiders to challenge for the play-offs.

However, it is difficult to see the team achieving anything more than just safety without Mowatt in the side.

Barnsley fans will hope that Mowatt is out for just a couple of weeks, but if his prognosis is worse than first feared, it is difficult to see the team achieving anything more than survival in the Championship this season.