Barnsley defender Callum Brittain has insisted that under-fire manager Markus Schopp still retains the backing from the Tykes’ dressing room as he calls for players, coaches and even fans to do more.

The Tykes have endured a very difficult start to the season in the Championship with them managing to secure just one win in their opening 11 league games under Schopp.

That comes after Barnsley’s remarkable run of form under Valerien Ismael saw them reach the play-off semi-finals last season to raise hopes that the Tykes could potentially be heading in the right direction.

However, Ismael’s departure in the summer along with Dane Murphy was always likely to mean that this was going to be a season of transition for Barnsley.

Having said that, the Tykes would have expected to be performing better and picking more results than they have been so far this season under Schopp.

Saturday’s 1-0 defeat at home to Millwall means that the Tykes have now suffered three successive defeats to fall into the relegation zone heading into the latest international break. That run has seen pressure start to mount on Schopp from supporters inside Oakwell.

 

 

Speaking to the Yorkshire Post, Brittain has moved to offer Schopp some backing and he insists that everyone at the club needs to perform better not just the new manager.

He included supporters within that amid a suggestion that they could have done more to influence the Millwall game.

He said: “As a player you have always got to back your manager.

“It’s not just the manager’s job to get results, it’s the players’ job. The players are out on the pitch, they need to produce.

“It is easy to blame the manager, especially after the way things went last year. He knows he needs to do better, I think the staff need to do better, and the players know they need to do better.

“I even think the fans can do better. It was 0-0 in the 80th minute, if the fans really get behind us then maybe we can kick on. It’s disappointing as a player at the moment, I know it is disappointing as a fan as well, everyone wants to win. We don’t go out there wanting to lose.

“I think everyone at this football club needs to come together in the next couple of weeks and start on a fresh page and start picking up results.”

The verdict

This is a very difficult situation for Barnsley who were a club that a few months ago seemed to be heading in the right direction in terms of their long-term future.

However, after the summer saw them lose Ismael and key players like Alex Mowatt and Daryl Dike, the Tykes have regressed concerningly over their first 11 Championship matches under Schopp.

Scoring goals is a major issue for Barnsley and Schopp is going to have to find a way of getting more out of the Tykes’ attacking talents that he has been able to do so far during his time in charge at Oakwell.

Brittain’s comments though at least show that Schopp has not lost the dressing room at Barnsley just yet, and that the players are aware that they need to start doing more to turn things around.

The next couple of games back from the international break are going to be pivotal for the Tykes, they have to go on an improved run of form you feel for Schopp to be secure in his job.

The defender might have a point about supporters needing to get behind Barnsley a little more.

However, at the moment there is little for them to get excited about so you can understand the lack of positive atmosphere around the stadium.