Phil SumblerIt would be fair to say that Barnsley come to the Liberty Stadium this evening probably with a feeling of having nothing to lose as they look to overturn the 1-0 result from the first leg at Oakwell on Monday evening.
They will arrive in South Wales knowing that they have to score, they have to win and they have to do something they haven’t done against Swansea since 2006 and that is beat us – ironically that was in the play offs as well and they needed penalties to do it then.
It is a tough ask for Valérien Ismaël and his team and it is a task that they are not underestimating the difficulty of but the Barnsley boss also thinks that his side displayed enough in the first leg to know that they can at least give the Swans something to think about on the night.
Barnsley pushed the Swans hard on Monday but came up against a resilient defence and a goalkeeper on top form to draw a blank against the Swans for the third time this season but he thinks the intensity and control from the second half on Monday is exactly what he is looking for in this game.
“We need to start the game on Saturday like we did the second half at Oakwell.” The Frenchman explained.
“That control, that intensity, it is what we need from the first whistle. Swansea didn’t play their best game, but they were focused and disciplined and did the simple things properly.
“I think we are well prepared, we know what we need to do and this is the play-offs – anything can happen.
“We have lost three times against them. But if we win on Saturday, that is all that matters. That is our job, our focus.
“We can’t change Monday night. Their goal is offside; he’s coming back from an offside position. There should be VAR in such a big game like this, but there’s nothing we can do about this now.
“The pure focus is Saturday in Swansea and being clinical in our performance. Then we can get the result that we want.
“They are one of the strongest teams in the Championship. But if we score we hope to make them nervous. This is our purpose.
“Swansea will this time have their fans with them. But it’s not always an advantage. It is an emotional feeling. We have to focus on the game-plan and try to score as quick as possible, and then let’s see.”
