After plenty of unexpected rest, the Reds are finally back in action this week with a fifth round Emirates FA Cup tie against Chelsea next up!
After the weekend washout that saw our clash with Derby County postponed due to Oakwell's playing surface being deemed waterlogged and unsafe to play on by referee Keith Stroud, we're hoping for better luck on Thursday 11 February when Premier League giants Chelsea arrive on Grove Street for an 8pm kick-off.
It will have been 12 days since our last fixture; the 0-0 draw at Nottingham Forest seems a while ago but perhaps this surprise period of rest will have helped the Reds, with a number of players suffering knocks in recent weeks.
The extra few days on the training ground will have been a bonus for Valérien Ismaël as the Head Coach works on a formula to eliminate the threat of the West London outfit on Thursday evening.
It's also given new signing, Daryl Dike more time to settle into life as a Barnsley player, and what a fixture for him to potentially make his Reds bow in.
Our visitors from the nation's capital were far from enjoying a great season up until recently. Their poor form saw club legend Frank Lampard dismissed following their fourth round victory over Luton Town.
Since the appointment of Thomas Tuchel, the Blues have won three and drawn one of their fixtures, conceding just the solitary goal in their most recent outing, the weekend victory at Sheffield United.
The German is no stranger to our own coach, as Tuchel and Ismaël went head-to-head when both were in charge of Dortmund and Wolfsburg respectively. Four years on and they meet again in football's oldest cup competition.
Of course, the Reds have already met Chelsea in cup competition this term. That ended in a 6-0 hammering at Stamford Bridge under Gerhard Struber's watch, but in the FA Cup, history is on Barnsley's side.
Back in 1989 the Reds hammered Chelsea 4-0 at home in the third round of the competition, with Gwyn Thomas, David Currie and Steve Agnew (x2) on the scoresheet. And famously, back in 2008 at Oakwell, we recorded a 1-0 win with Kayode Odejayi's second half header seeing off the holders of the cup to reach the semi finals.
The big match is being televised LIVE on BBC One from 7.30pm, so free to air for all Reds supporters, just as it was 13 years ago.
It is sure to be a stern test for the Reds on Thursday evening at Oakwell, with a place in the quarter finals up for grabs.
Both Valérien Ismaël and his captain, Alex Mowatt attended a pre-match press conference to help preview the tie, and both videos are available to see over on iFollow Barnsley.
