Dani Pinillos believes the competition at left-back is improving him as a player and Barnsley as a team.
The 26-year-old lost his place to teenager Ben Williams, after a wild tackle by Charlton Athletic’s Chris Solly in the last game of 2018 which put the Spaniard out of action. Williams is now injured so Pinillos returned to the side on Saturday for the 2-0 win over Scunthorpe United.
Zeki Fryers is also in the first team squad which makes left-back one of the most competitive positions. Pinillos told the Chronicle: “If the squad just has one player in your position and you play all the games it is not good for you because you are too comfortable and you don’t train 100 per cent.
“If you are fighting with someone to play at the weekend, the level of the team is higher. I was injured for one week but Ben was playing so good that I had to wait for my opportunity.”
Pinillos has been promoted to the Spanish top flight previously with Cordoba and is hoping to go up again with Barnsley who are currently second in League One.
“We have 16 finals and they will all be difficult but, if we are focused on what the gaffer wants, we have a big opportunity to go up. We are in the top two because we have been playing really well in the last ten games. We don’t need to feel any pressure, we will just take it game by game.
“We need to focus on Barnsley but it is difficult because normally the first thing you do when you come off the pitch is check the results of the other teams. We just need to win every game and if our rivals lose then that is good as well.
“All the teams are close so, if you drop points, you might fall down some places. I definitely think we can finish first this season.”
Pinillos has been at Oakwell for a year since signing from Cordoba in the 2018 January transfer window. The former Nottingham Forest player has played 34 games for the Reds.
“My time here has been really good. Being relegated was not a good experience but you have to look forward and our situation now is good.”
