Barnsley boss Poya Asbaghi is expected to take charge of his side's last three games of the 2021/22 campaign despite their relegation being confirmed last night, as per a Twitter update from journalist Doug O'Kane.
The Tykes came into yesterday's local derby against Huddersfield Town needing a win to give themselves any chance of remaining afloat in the division following their 2-0 home loss to Peterborough United on Easter Monday.
However, they suffered an early setback at the John Smith's Stadium when Jordan Rhodes put the Terriers 1-0 up in the fourth minute - and they were given a mountain to climb when Harry Toffolo had all the time in the world to place the ball past Jack Walton in stoppage time at the end of the first half.
A consolation from Callum Styles right at the end of the game gave Asbaghi's men a tiny glimmer of hope but it was too little, too late for the South Yorkshire outfit who desperately needed the three points on the night in their previous quest to catch Reading.
This sums up what has been a poor tenure for their current boss thus far, who wasn't able to enjoy a managerial bounce and barring a mini-resurgence earlier this calendar year, has endured a very underwhelming spell at Oakwell.
Despite this, he is set to take charge of their next three games according to reporter O'Kane, with the season coming to an end in just a few weeks.
The Verdict:
Considering how close the end of the season is, it probably wouldn't make sense to sever ties now with the club unlikely to get a successor in to make any form of impact ahead of next season.
However, it could be argued that those three games could help a new boss to get to know his existing players, judge who should stay and who should depart Oakwell and in this sense, getting in someone as soon as possible would be a good option.
They needed to make the decision to sack Asbaghi quite some time ago though and they should be criticised for not acting swiftly - because it looked clear from the early stages of his tenure that it wasn't going to work out.
Clearly, someone like Neil Warnock was needed to try and get them out of this mess, but their reluctance to make another chance has probably cost them their second-tier status and this is why the board need to take responsibility for the Tykes' downfall.
Their inability to adequately replace the likes of Alex Mowatt and Daryl Dike should also be criticised, so Asbaghi isn't the only person at fault here, though it doesn't seem like he will have much of a future in Yorkshire with relegation now confirmed.