BARNSLEY are poised to complete the signing of striker Obbi Oulare while new boss Markus Schopp also wants another midfielder and potentially a new left-back.

There are three weeks remaining until Barnsley are due to begin their Championship season at Cardiff City on August 7, while the transfer window is open until the end of August.

So far they have signed one new player for the first team this summer, striker Devante Cole who returned after a 2014 loan spell.

They are extremely close to recruiting another striker, Belgian Oulare from Standard Liege, on a permanent deal.

The 25-year-old has been in Barnsley this week and has undergone a medical, the Chronicle understands.

Schopp – who was appointed head coach last month after Valerien Ismael left for West Bromwich Albion – is hoping to strengthen midfield, after captain Alex Mowatt also departed to The Hawthorns.

Schopp, who is working closely with co-owner Paul Conway on transfers after the exit of chief executive Dane Murphy, told the Chronicle: “We are talking about a couple of new guys.

“Probably there will be one or another young player who will not have the chance to make so many appearances this season, so we will bring another guy in. I believe we are going keep the rest of the guys that are here and build something with him.

“We will look for something in the midfield. This is clear.

“And in the attack we are looking for something different.

“We have to find the right guy who fits best to us and makes us better, not just anybody.”

Schopp used a 3-4-3 formation in the friendly win at Rochdale on Wednesday – his first pre-season game – but said it was not necessarily the system he would always employ.

Callum Styles played in central midfield, his natural position, after playing at left wing-back for most of last season.

Should he be used there in the coming season, the options at left wing-back would be Ben Williams – who is just returning from a year out with injury – as well as right-back Jordan Williams and midfielder Clarke Oduor.

On Styles, Schopp told the Chronicle: “I know what he played last season, and he did a really good job in that position.

“But I need to find solutions and I know that he is a very really good player.

“I am looking at how I can use this kind of player in my idea of playing football.

“I know Stylesy can play on the left but I just wanted to get an idea of some other guys who can play on the left. This (signing a new left-back) is a discussion I am having with Paul.”

The other midfield options include Romal Palmer, who played regularly alongside Mowatt in the second half of last season, and Herbie Kane, who started just six league matches last season.

Oduor is also a central midfielder who has been used on the left, while Jasper Moon was converted from defender to midfielder last season.

All of those players are 22 or younger, while the Reds also have 28-year-old Austrian Marcel Ritzmaier who has returned after a season-long loan to Rapid Vienna and played at Rochdale.

Schopp, a midfielder himself, said: “I am always in discussions with Paul.

“He’s the guy I am talking with.

“He has some ideas and I am getting to know the players. It is about deciding where we want to go.

“We have an identity of how we want to play. I have recommended players I know but there are so many interesting English players. It’s not about old or young, it’s about quality.

“There is a lot of stuff going on.

“We lost a couple of experienced guys. We have young guys with a lot of potential. It is one thing to get a clue about players by watching clips but it’s totally different in training and games.

“We have got to know the players.”

The likes of Styles, Callum Brittain, Michal Helik, Mads Andersen and Cauley Woodrow all impressed during Barnsley’s run to the play-offs last season. Most if not all of them are thought to be of interest to other clubs but they are all contracted until at least 2023 and outgoing chief executive Murphy suggested earlier this summer the Reds would not sell for anything less than £5milllion. Schopp said: “A couple of guys had an awesome season and we have to be very careful because they will be better known in this league.

“I think the club is trying to go ahead with these guys.”