Bristol City v Barnsley - Jordan Williams ready to repay faith of Reds coach

VALERIEN ISMAEL is viewed by many as someone who wears an iron fist in a velvet glove.
Back in the frame: Jordan Williams, right, congratulating Barnsley's Carlton Morris on his goal against Blackburn.
Picture: Jonathan GawthorpeBack in the frame: Jordan Williams, right, congratulating Barnsley's Carlton Morris on his goal against Blackburn.
Picture: Jonathan Gawthorpe
Back in the frame: Jordan Williams, right, congratulating Barnsley's Carlton Morris on his goal against Blackburn. Picture: Jonathan Gawthorpe

A thoughtful, quietly-spoken individual, the Barnsley head coach is intense and demanding with his players in training and on match-day, yet there is also a human side to the Frenchman.

Ask Jordan Williams, a player who is finally able to start to show Ismael what he is about after some luckless fortune on the injury front since the autumn.

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Like with Toby Sibbick, another defender who needed a metaphorical arm around him after a tough time, Ismael has showed his caring qualities to Williams.

Williams, impressive as an interval replacement for Callum Styles in midweek and pushing for a start, said: “Training is very demanding and intense all the time, but it keeps the boys level-headed and on the front foot and always wanting to get better.

“His (Ismael’s) man-management has also been very good. I have been injured and he was always talking to me.

“It was a tough couple of months. I was doing well and signed a new contract, but then I got injured and came back and it happened again and then again.

CARING SIDE: Barnsley manager Valerien Ismael. Picture: Andrew Yates/SportimageCARING SIDE: Barnsley manager Valerien Ismael. Picture: Andrew Yates/Sportimage
CARING SIDE: Barnsley manager Valerien Ismael. Picture: Andrew Yates/Sportimage
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“It started in my hamstring and I was then having a pain at the back of my knee which is joined to my knee and then I tore my quad, which put me back two to three weeks. Hopefully, that is behind me now and I can focus on football again.

“Now I want to show the manager what I am about. He has seen video clips of me in the past and I have played the last few games and have done well, so hopefully I will have the chance to start in the next few weeks.

“He kept asking when I am back and that the team needs me and that it is not just down to the boys (playing).”

The Reds head to Severnside on the back of contrasting victories against Brentford and Blackburn, with victory against the latter perhaps even more significant than the former.

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Blackburn came to Oakwell with tactics designed to stop Barnsley’s press while changing their system. It was to the Reds’ credit that they solved the puzzle. They will face several codes to crack in the games ahead.

Williams added: “A lot of teams don’t like playing against Barnsley as it is a horrible game. Teams will try and work us out and play over the press and it is about how we deal with that in the future now.

“Our pressing is one of the best in the league and hopefully we can replicate that and change how we play to cope with it.”

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