Southend United Outclassed by Ten-Man Barnsley

Brilliant Barnsley

Despite being a man down for the majority of the match, it certainly did not seem that way. Barnsley are looking like one of the most exciting sides in the country at present and, despite going down to ten men, were superior in every department.

Southend United fans could only sit in awe and admiration of such a professional Barnsley performance. In attempting to take advantage of their numerical advantage, it came back to bite them.

There was such an emphatic and discernible gulf in class on show at Roots Hall. Southend created a handful of chances, whereas Barnsley were a constant threat despite missing star man Kieffer Moore.

On Their Way Back

Barnsley proved their credentials as title contenders and consolidated a place in the automatic promotion places. They now sit two points behind league leaders Luton Town and this performance will give them plenty of confidence going forward.

The Tykes ticked all the boxes on Saturday afternoon and look a truly formidable side. Going down to ten men didn’t influence their performance whatsoever, conversely, it made them look even stronger.

Daniel Stendel’s squad is fiercely athletic, energetic and packed with quality all over the pitch. The philosophy and game management was spot on, with two of their goals coming from patient pressing and hitting Southend devastatingly on the counter-attack.

Same Old Story for Southend

Ben Coker described his side as ‘passive’ in the studio and didn’t shy away from criticising his side’s shortcomings. Going a man to the good was a perfect opportunity to suppress Barnsley and find a much-needed win, but they offered very little.

Manager Chris Powell blamed their lacklustre performance on naivety and inexperience, but his side’s problems stretch further than that. Unimaginative, predictable and lacking quality, Southend now enter a relegation dogfight and look out of ideas.