Barnsley are willing to make 'radical changes' to the playing squad, if new head coach Daniel Stendel requires them to implement his style of play.
The German boss is currently getting to know the squad by studying video clips of them and consulting with academy manager Bobby Hassell, who has been tasked by the club to help him acclimatise to English football and League One. Stendel – who will meet the players for the first time on June 25 – is understood to play a high-intensity pressing style.
Chief executive Gauthier Ganaye said at the end of the season that, with more than 20 senior players under contract, the Reds were unlikely to make wholesale changes to the squad. But, while it will certainly be not on the scale of a year ago when more than 15 players came both in and out, Ganaye admits there could be more business done than initially expected if Stendel believes the current squad is not equipped to play his style.
The chief executive told the Chronicle: "We have already discussed the squad with him. Obviously some players will fit the style of play he wants perfectly, and some will absolutely not. We are ready to make radical decisions. If you give the keys to someone because you want him to play a certain style of football, you have to let him make changes to the squad to fit his style of play. When you play a counter-attacking, pressing style, if one person on the pitch cannot do it, it is useless.
"I think the core of the team is good, but we have a new head coach who is assessing the squad and we want the players to play the way he wants, so the plan could change."But we are not going to have a crazy transfer window like last summer. It should never be like that again."
Ganaye suggested it was likely that the German would bring some of his former Hannover players to Oakwell but that the nationality of most of the signings was as yet unknown. He said: "The tactical profile of what he is looking for for every position is very clear in his head. It doesn't matter what nationality, as long as they fit his profile. He will tell us what he wants from each position then, through data, we identify some players who fit that profile then we video scout them and scout them in person.
"Then we come back to the head coach with a shortlist of players, usually three, and he chooses his first, second and third options. Then we work through the list and see which ones we can get for our budget."
