The Reds suffered their second defeat of the season, with the hosts taking the points in the capital on what will be regarded as an ‘off day’ for Daniel Stendel’s side.
Stendel made three changes coming into the match following the victory over Luton Town at Oakwell last weekend, with Adam Davies and Kenny Dougall returning from international duty and Dani Pinillos reclaiming a starting position after injury.
The hosts began the day in mid-table, but with a game-in-hand on teams around them they wanted to start quickly and claim what would be an important three points and they did exactly that. Just eight minutes into the game, Charlton counter-attacked the back-line at pace and Karlan Grant found his way into the box and fired in, off the post.
The Reds then remained under pressure as the hosts came forward at pace. Stendel’s side continued to see plenty of the ball but will have been disappointed with their end-product when in attacking areas.
The nearly-moment arrived, as Alex Mowatt curled an audacious 30-yard effort at goal from a free-kick, seeing Jed Steer dive to his left and tip it wide of the post.
In what was then a relatively uneventful first half, Stendel’s side went in a goal behind knowing they needed to change things at the break.
HALF TIME: Charlton 1-0 Barnsley
Stendel looked to his bench at the break. Top-scorer Kieffer Moore was introduced after recovering from injury. The forward replaced Cameron McGeehan, who battled well in the first half but a change of shape meant he was the man to come off.
However, despite renewed optimism, the change didn’t pay off. It was Grant again who found space in the box and he made no mistake from close range to double Charlton’s lead, with nobody able to say it wasn’t deserved following their pressure.
A second and third change quickly followed, with Mamadou Thiam and Ryan Hedges replacing George Moncur and the previously booked Dani Pinillos.
The changes certainly made the Reds a more attacking outfit with bodies pouring forward. The main threat looked like it could come from set-pieces with plenty of corners on offer, as well as free-kick chances both centrally and wide. Charlton saw the pace coming at them and made plenty of small fouls to slow the game down, but the Reds again couldn’t capitalise.
As the second-half drew to a close, the 1,500 or so travelling Reds continued to make themselves heard from the away end, knowing full-well that the season is a long-one and their side remain at the correct end of the Sky Bet League One table.
FULL TIME: Charlton 2-0 Barnsley
Davies, Cavaré, Pinnock, Lindsay, Pinillos (Hedges), Potts, Moncur (Thiam), Mowatt, Dougall, McGeehan (Moore), Brown.
