Poya Asbaghi speaks out on Dominik Frieser after Barnsley departure | OneFootball

Barnsley manager Poya Asbaghi has hailed Dominik Frieser as a ‘super professional’ and ‘likeable’ player after seeing the winger terminate his contract at Oakwell, speaking to his side’s media team.

It was announced by the club yesterday that the 28-year-old had come to a mutual decision with the Tykes to end his 16-month stay in South Yorkshire after being left out in the cold by new boss Asbaghi, playing just once under the Iranian’s stewardship at the end of November against Swansea City.

Since then, he was left on the bench as an unused substitute in the following game against Peterborough United and was then dropped from the matchday squad entirely for the next three matches despite making 13 league appearances under ex-boss Markus Schopp earlier in the campaign.

Quiz: Can you name which club Barnsley sold these 26 players to?

He also played a big part in the Tykes’ first team last term, only managing to record five goal contributions in the second tier but still producing a respectable 42 displays as the South Yorkshire side charged towards the play-offs, though his time was shared between being a starter and coming on as a substitute.

This track record didn’t change Asbaghi’s mind, however, and he has been released from his contract to move closer to home and find another club ahead of the January transfer window.

Speaking about his departure, the Tykes’ manager said: “It was a mutual agreement. For Dominik, it is a chance to move closer to home with his family.

“We appreciate everything Dominik has done; he has been a super professional player, a likeable player in the changing room as well, but it has been a normal mutual agreement, which is normal in football.

“It’s nothing dramatic at all and, in the end, I think it’s a solution that both parties are happy with.”

The Verdict:

Despite not appearing in the Championship side’s last three games, his departure comes as something of a shock considering how useful he was as an option in the front last term, but surely this indicates there will be numerous additions in January?

Not only will they need quality to stay afloat in the division, but also depth with Covid-19 cases continuing to cause havoc to English sides’ Christmas schedules.

Mads Andersen, Liam Kitching and Michal Helik look like a capable back three and the likes of Callum Styles and Callum Brittain can do a good enough job as wing-backs, but it does feel as though they need more in midfield and up front if they want to improve their goalscoring record, a weakness under current boss Asbaghi thus far.

With captain Cauley Woodrow not being able to replicate his goalscoring form from recent seasons, many would look towards the striking department and rightly so. In fact, the whole front three needs to be addressed with all three starters needing to contribute.

But they have missed Alex Mowatt just as much as former manager Valerien Ismael and former loanee Daryl Dike, not just because of his leadership, but also his goal contributions as he scored eight times and recorded seven assists in the league last season.