DEVANTE Cole says it has been ‘very frustrating’ to have limited gametime under Markus Schopp, who the striker says has offered little reasoning for leaving him mainly on the bench or out of the matchday squad.
The 26-year-old, who joined on a three-year deal in the summer, has started just one of Barnsley’s 14 Championship games this season, coming off the bench in four others.
He scored in the 3-2 home defeat to Sheffield United on Sunday, his first goal for the club since a 2014 loan spell.
Cole told the Chronicle: “It’s my aim to score goals in the little time I have to play in. I am just trying to show what I can do so I get more minutes.
“It’s been very frustrating for me, but it’s football and it can happen.
“I can only work hard in training and see what happens.
“The manager hasn’t really told me why I haven’t played much.”
The loss to the Blades was a sixth in a row for a side who are winless in 12 and second-bottom in the Championship.
Cole said: “It’s not ideal and not what we want but we have to stick together and show what we can do. I am confident that, as a group, we can get ourselves out of this situation.”
Barnsley fans booed Schopp off the pitch on Sunday after a series of negative chants. Cole said: “The fans have to understand we don’t want to be in this position and we are trying hard to change it for them.
“The players know the fans are with us. They can voice their discontent but we have to just focus on our job.”
Cole and fellow substitute Aaron Leya Iseka both scored as the Reds fought back from 3-0 down. He said: “As a striker you live and die by your goals, so that will give us a lot of confidence.”
Cole appeared to criticise Schopp when he said: “After the third goal, we said ‘come on we need to show something here’. That’s come from the group on the pitch. That was just the boys rallying together.”
