Managerless Barnsley have placed under-23's manager Martin Devaney on their shortlist of potential replacements for Poya Asbaghi, according to the Barnsley Chronicle.

The Tykes suffered relegation from the Championship less than 12 months after making the play-offs in the second tier, with Asbaghi being the club's second boss of the season after Markus Schopp.

The Swede was unable to keep the Yorkshire side in the league though despite results improving somewhat in the final few months of the season, and in the end the hierarchy chose to part company with Asbaghi.

 

 

 

 

Devaney, a former winger who played 159 times in the league for Barnsley between 2005 and 2011, was appointed as caretaker manager for the final three league games of the campaign, and despite the Tykes losing out in all of them, the 41-year-old is in contention for the vacancy.

He has been at the club in a non-playing capacity since November 2015 when he was appointed Professional Development Phase Coach, before then going on to manage their development squad.

Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink is another individual who has been linked as a potential contender for the vacancy but Devaney is definitely being considered by the board as a 'long-term option'.

The Verdict

Devaney will be part of the first-team coaching staff for Barnsley next season one way or another - it's just a case if he's leading the team or if he's just in the background.

Barnsley fans would probably see Devaney as an underwhelming option considering there's a big name like Hasselbaink supposedly in the running.

However, there's likely going to be a lot of emphasis put on bringing youth through at Oakwell from now on, and Devaney may be the individual best equipped to aid their development.

We may not find out who wins the race for the vacancy for a number of weeks, but Devaney is certainly going to get his shot to prove his case.