Seven in a row: Conclusions from another crucial victory for Valerien Ismael’s Barnsley

Barnsley FC made it seven wins on the bounce on Saturday with a hard-fought 1-0 victory over strugglers Birmingham City at Oakwell.

The win sees the Tykes climb into the play-off spots for the first time this season, and continues to strengthen their credentials with Valerien Ismael’s team the in-form outfit in the Championship over recent weeks.

A team playing without fear, the amount of cohesion in the Barnsley team has been instrumental to their run of form, with a clear understanding between everyone involved. Here are some conclusions from the Reds victory over Birmingham today.

Dike shines once again

A key figure for Barnsley over their run of form, new signing Daryl Dike continues to make an impression in the Championship and put in another excellent display in attack for the South Yorkshire side today.

The USA international caused the Birmingham defence all sorts of problems and his goal in the 49th minute was a prime example of the goalscoring prowess he’s brought to Barnsley.

His second goal in the space of two games, the signing is proving to be a masterstroke for Barnsley and is providing a significant boost to their challenge for the play-offs.

Their squad depth is paramount

With their excellent business over the last couple of transfer windows, Barnsley manager Valerien Ismael is working with a side that boasts a significant amount of squad depth.

The Tykes’ French manager has a handful of players he can rely on in every position and once again made good use of the five substitute rule bringing five players off the bench.

While the majority of sides in the Championship are suffering from injury crisis’s Barnsley aren’t which bodes well for Ismael, who always has a healthy pool of players he can choose from on a matchday.

Another good opportunity on Wednesday

With the Reds on an excellent run of form, their match at home to struggling Derby County on Wednesday will provide another glorious opportunity for Barnsley to stretch their winning run to eight games ahead of a huge clash with AFC Bournemouth next Saturday.

The visiting Derby will travel to Oakwell on Wednesday night off the back of a disappointing defeat against Coventry City, and Barnsley will surely be keen to pile even more misery on the Rams.

A win on Wednesday will be crucial for Barnsley and will allow them to have maximum momentum ahead of their trip to the South Coast to face Bournemouth next weekend.

Conclusion

To conclude, Valerien Ismael will be delighted that his Barnsley side was able to take another victory this weekend to keep up their scintillating run of form that has seen them climb into the playoff placings.

The recent performances of Barnsley are proving to be one of the biggest stories in the Championship it’s clear that they’re genuine contenders in the race for the top six.

But with two more vital games coming up in the next week Barnsley must ensure they keep their foot on the gas as the Championship will continue to throw tough tests as them.