Barnsley FC chiefs must back Darrell Clarke over Swansea City, Preston North End target | OneFootball

Tykes midfielder Adam Phillips is reportedly drawing interest from the Championship, but the League One side can't afford to lose him this month.

Barnsley are hoping to end a three-year exile from the Championship this season, as Darrell Clarke looks to guide the club to promotion out of League One.

The Tykes are firmly among the promotion contenders at the halfway point of the campaign, with Clarke's side sitting fifth in League One heading into their matchday 26 clash with relegation strugglers Bristol Rovers.

Clarke's 3-5-2 approach appears to be getting the best out of a number of Barnsley's players, but perhaps none more so than central midfielder Adam Phillips.

The 27-year-old has been instrumental to Barnsley's success so far this term, playing the role as one of Clarke's most creative attacking nodes. However, his standout performances have begun to turn heads from further up the EFL pyramid.

If Barnsley are to see through their promotion ambitions this season, then retaining the services of Phillips must be something that the club's hierarchy are unanimously prepared to get behind.

Losing Adam Phillips would land a major blow to Barnsley's promotion hopes

If there's one player that Barnsley supporters would not want to have taken from their team in the January window, it's safe to assume that many of them would name Phillips.

Ever since making the switch to Oakwell from Burnley in September 2022, the former Liverpool youngster has been firmly cementing himself as one of the best central midfield players in League One.

Eight goals and nine assists in the third tier during the 2022/23 season was followed up by a 12-goal, six assists campaign last term, and he looks to be on course to better that return in the second half of this season too.

Whether it's his pressing and ability to win the ball back high up the pitch, constantly winning his individual midfield battles and duels, or the number of chances he creates for himself and his teammates, Phillips is so commonly at the heart of everything Barnsley do well.

However, with the midfield maestro only contracted with the club until 2026, Championship sides Preston North End and Swansea City have emerged as holding interest over a potential move this month, and the former's interest could potentially be head-turning, with Phillips said to be a boyhood PNE fan, and was born in nearby Garstang.

As of 13 January, the Barnsley Chronicle report that no official bids have been received by Barnsley for Phillips, but as the window moves on, teams may start getting desperate to add to their squads, and so this could be one that rumbles on throughout the month.

Barnsley board must stand behind Darrell Clarke with a firm 'not for sale' stance regarding Phillips this month

Losing key players halfway through the season, in a notoriously difficult window to do business in when searching for new recruits, is always a situation the clubs look to avoid.

For a team such as Barnsley who harbour promotion hopes, taking a player such as Phillips out of that side could be catastrophic as the Tykes prepare to enter the business end of the season.

However, as is the case with many clubs in League One, financial issues have been present inside Oakwell in recent times.

In 2024, Barnsley Football Club Ltd's accounts, filed with Companies House, revealed that they were hit with a pre-tax loss of £4m in the year ending May 31, 2023, which was an improvement upon the £7m lost in 2021/22.

Perhaps even more worryingly, the club's turnover fell to £9.54m from £15m the previous year. This was largely attributed to the "reduction in EFL distributions and Premier League solidarity income" due to their relegation from the Championship in 2022 by Insider Media.

Potentially then, cashing in on Phillips could land the club a sizable injection of funds, which could be very tempting for the club's hierarchy given the aforementioned reasons.

But, promotion to the Championship would also help fill the club's coffers, but to do that, they will need their star players to remain at Oakwell.

Therefore, now should be the time for Barnsley's owners to stand behind their manager, and tell clubs that are interested in Phillips that their star midfielder is not in the shop window.