The Valerian Ismael era continues to motor on with a fourth win in five matches under the Frenchman, all with clean sheets.
The Reds remain six points behind the playoffs but more crucially are now eight points clear of the relegation zone – the same amount of points as they are off top spot.
The current run of onedefeat in eight (W4 D3 L1) is their best run at this level since another run of one defeat in eight (W3 D4 L1) between September and November 2017.
Ismael is the first Barnsley manager to win his first three home games without conceding since Paul Heckingbottom in 2016.
This result moved Barnsley up to 13th in the Championship, their highest league standing since the opening day of 2019-2020 when they were ninth after a 1-0 win over Fulham.
This was Barnsley’s fourth successive Oakwell victory over Forest (all comps) with the last three all being accompanied with clean sheets.
Three of the last four Oakwell goals scored against Forest have come after the 85th minute.
Barnsley have lost only two of their last 13 Oakwell meetings with Forest (W9 D2) with both those defeats being heavy ones (1-4, 2-5)
After hitting the crossbar an incredible three times Barnsley finally broke the deadlock through Callum Styles after 85 minutes. It is the latest the deadlock has been broken in a Barnsley game since Forest visited for the final Oakwell game of 2019-2020 in July when Patrick Schmidt secured a 1-0 win after 93 minutes.
Barnsley scored twice in the last five minutes of a game for the first time since September 2016 when Saidy Janko (85) and Tom Bradshaw (90) sealed a 4-0 victory at Wolves.
Barnsley have now opened the scoring in seven of their last eight Championship matches and are undefeated in all those seven. The one game they conceded first, at Cardiff, they lost 3-0.
Indeed Barnsley are now unbeaten in their last 18 Championship games in which they have opened the scoring (W14 D4) last losing when breaking the deadlock at Cardiff in December 2019.
Cauley Woodrow both scored and assisted for the third time in his Barnsley career.
A player has both scored and assisted in the same game for a second successive match following Conor Chaplin doing so at Derby prior to the international break.
This is only the second league game this season in which two Barnsley goals have been directly assisted by a team-mate (also at Stoke)
All six of Barnsley’s wins this season (4 league, 2 cup) have been accompanied with clean sheets, the first time their first six wins of a season have been accompanied with shut-outs since 2005-2006 (Swindon 2-0, Yeovil 1-0, Nottingham Forest 2-0, Gillingham 3-0, Oldham 4-0, Rotherham 1-0)
Indeed 12 of Barnsley’s last 13 victories have been accompanied by clean sheets, with the one exception, the last gasp win at Brentford to conclude 2019-2020 – their opponents on Tuesday.
Barnsley have the current joint best home defensive record in the Championship. Nobody has conceded less than the three goals Barnsley have at Oakwell, level with Swansea and Middlesbrough.
Since returning from lockdown in June the Reds have kept nine home clean sheets (all comps) from 11 games whilst Jack Walton now has 13 clean sheets from 30 career appearances for the Reds.
Woodrow scored his fifth goal of the season (all comps) from 11 games, only two of those have not been penalties and both have come against Forest.
This was the 34th different game Woodrow has scored in for Barnsley and the 18th win. The Reds have only lost one of the last seven games in which Woodrow has netted (W5)
Since returning to the Championship Barnsley have scored 16 goals in the last 10 minutes of matches.
There were only three minutes between Barnsley’s two goals, the closest time between two Reds strikes since January 2017 when Tom Bradshaw scored on 45 and Ryan Kent on 48 in a 3-2 win v Leeds.
It is the first time without a 15 minute half-time break in between however since Sam Winnall scored on 84 and 87 at Birmingham in December 2016.
Barnsley have won three successive home games in the Championship for the first time since August 2016 when they won their first three of 2016-2017.
New rules came in this week to allow clubs to use five substitutes as they had following football’s return from lockdown last season. Barnsley have played 10 matches with these rules and have utilised all five changes on three occasions including yesterday.
Forest goalkeeper Brice Samba was booked for complaining about Styles’ goal, the first opposition keeper yellow carded since Middlesbrough’s Marcus Bettinelli in October.
Barnsley have won on three successive Saturday’s in the Championship for the first time since defeating Birmingham 3-0, Norwich 2-1 and Cardiff 4-3 in December 2016.
Although hitting the crossbar three times, Barnsley managed only two shots on target and scored from both, their second 100% record this season (also scoring 1/1 at Middlesbrough in October)
Forest won eight corners, the most by a Barnsley opponent at Oakwell since Millwall in June (8)
There has been 23 fouls committed in each of Barnsley’s last three matches.
This was the first time in three league meetings with Lyle Taylor that he has not scored against the Reds – he netted home and away for Charlton last season.
Barnsley went through an entire game without a booking for the third time this season.
Barnsley Team:
1 Jack Walton
6. Mads Andersen
26. Michael Sollbauer
30. Michal Helik
7. Callum Brittain
32. Matty James
4. Callum Styles
27. Alex Mowatt
28. Dominik Frieser
9. Cauley Woodrow
11. Conor Chaplin
Substitutes:
8. Herbie Kane (for James 62)
16. Luke Thomas (for Frieser 62)
29. Victor Adeboyejo (for Chaplin 81)
22. Clarke Oduor (for Mowatt 82)
2. Jordan Williams (for Brittain 90+2)
Unused Substitutes:
40. Brad Collins, 25. George Miller, 21. Romal Palmer, 19. Patrick Schmidt
Nottingham Forest Team:
30. Brice Samba
5. Yuri Ribeiro
26. Scott McKenna
3. Tobias Figueiredo
2. Cyrus Christie
28. Anthony Knockaert
22. Ryan Yates
8. Jack Colback
23. Joe Lolley
19. Miguel Angel Guerrero
33. Lyle Taylor
Substitutions:
15. Luke Freeman (for Guerrero 72)
Unused Substitutes:
11. Sammy Ameobi, 31. Harry Arter, 66. Gaetan Bong, 44. Nikolas Ioannou, 15. Carl Jenkinson, 6. Loic Mbe Soh, 18. Cafu, 12. Jordan Smith
Nottingham Forest manager Chris Hughtonsaid:
"We created the better chances through normal play. If you don't put your chances away then a good enough side like Barnsley can possibly capitalise on that.
"We haven't played a bad team so far this season. Barnsley kept going and looked for their opportunities.
"Unfortunately, it didn't happen for us today and it did for them. We've got to be scoring goals and if we're not taking the opportunities then we continue to put that pressure on ourselves."
Sky Bet Championship results
FRIDAY 20TH NOVEMBER 2020
Coventry City (21st) 0-0 Birmingham City (17th)
SATURDAY 21ST NOVEMBER 2020
AFC Bournemouth (2nd) 4-2 Reading (6th)
Lucas Joao pen 4
Aluko 43
Solanke 56
Groeneveld 59
Cook 77
Solanke 89
BARNSLEY (13th) 2-0 Nottingham Forest (20th
Styles 85
Woodrow 88
Bristol City (3rd) 1-0 Derby County (24th)
Diedhiou 78
Luton Town (10th) 1-1 Blackburn Rovers (14th)
Berry 69
Gallagher 72
Middlesbrough (8th) 0-1 Norwich City (1st)
Pukki pen 72
Millwall (9th) 1-1 Cardiff City (15th)
Smith 35
Moore 79
Preston North End (12th) 1-0 Sheffield Wednesday (23rd)
Barkhuizen 48
Queens Park Rangers (18th) 1-1 Watford (5th)
Wilmot 3
Chair 77
Stoke City (7th) 4-3 Huddersfield Town (16th)
Eiting 24
Campbell 31
Campbell 33
Mbenza 40
Stearman og 45
Clucas 57
Sarr 60
Swansea City (4th) 1-0 Rotherham United (19th)
Grimes 28
Wycombe Wanderers (22nd) 0-0 Brentford (11th)
Barnsley lie in 13th place in the Sky Bet Championship with 16 points from 12 games. We are 6 points off the Play-Offs, 7 points off the Automatic Promotion Places, 8 points off First Place and 8 points above the Relegation Zone.
Up to 22/11/20
Next Up:
At Oakwell:
Sky Bet Championship Matchday Thirteen: Barnsley v Brentford, Tuesday 24th November 2020. Kick-Off: 7:45pm
On The Road:
Sky Bet Championship Matchday Fourteen: Blackburn Rovers v Barnsley, Saturday 28th November 2020. Kick-Off: 3pm.