Paul Heckingbottom believes Barnsley will stay up this season and wants them to do so, but is determined to beat his former club with Leeds United at Elland Road tomorrow.
The Royston man, 40, spent exactly two years in charge of his hometown club, leading them to promotion and the Johnstone's Paint Trophy, before leaving for Leeds on February 6 and taking with him assistant Jamie Clapham, sport scientist Nathan Winder and analyst Alex Bailey. He left Barnsley one point and one place clear of the relegation zone following just one win in his last 16 games and they are now in the bottom three, two points off safety.
Heckingbottom was at Oakwell on Saturday for Barnsley's 2-2 draw against fourth-bottom Bolton Wanderers, which was a tenth point collected in 11 games under his replacement Jose Morais. He told the Chronicle: "I want them to stay up and I think that they will. Jose has got them in a decent position and the win against Sheffield United has given them a bit more belief.
"They have got players back fit and it's up to the players now. It's going to be tough but they have to believe they can do it. The game in hand is a big one for them. I do want them to stay up but I also want to beat them on Saturday."
Several times during his spell as Reds boss, Heckingbottom expressed frustration at the lack of progress in signing and re-signing players, including his 2016 promotion stars, as well as suggesting that he had to take on extra responsibilities which would not usually be expected of a head coach.
When he left, he was annoyed by a statement the Barnsley board released which expressed their shock that he had moved days after signing a new contract and claimed that in the January transfer window 'the board of directors worked tirelessly with Paul to secure targets.'
He said: "It was bang out of order, some of the things they said. They know that. They just wanted to save face. It upset me. I don't usually pay attention to what other people say, apart from when it affects my family in a negative way. It was trouble caused by people not being big enough and brave enough to admit what had gone off."
He added: "I could have stayed at a club I supported but I decided to be ambitious. You can't want people to drive themselves and others to be the best they can be at your football club then be upset when they push beyond that. We saw it with players then it happened again with me."
Heckingbottom knows it will be surreal to be standing next to former colleagues such as physiotherapist Craig Sedgwick and goalkeeper coach John Vaughan on the sidelines, and is anticipating anger from his former supporters.
"I am expecting a bit of barracking from the away end. The reaction from people I know and people I don't know who I have bumped into since I left has been really good. But I am sure it will be different on Saturday. It might be strange being on the sideline next to people I know really well.
"It was strange going back on Saturday and watching them for the first time there since I left. When the whistle goes, it will be red shirts and white shirts and you just have to do your job. I had a really good time at Barnsley.
"It was a learning curve with not just the football but responsibilities and decision-making at the club which brought different challenges to most clubs. It's helped me at Leeds.
"I've played against Barnsley before and I've played and managed against loads of former clubs. It's not that new. The difference is I am a Barnsley lad, I have loads of friends and family connected to the club, and I've only just left.
"It helps me because I know the players, but Barnsley are scrapping for their lives and it's do or die for them which changes the whole outlook of the game.I am glad we can't send them down with this result, but it's unfortunate that this game has come along at this time."
Heckingbottom knows that one of Barnsley's key threats will be Oliver McBurnie, who has eight goals in 13 games since arriving in January. When Barnsley boss, he thought he had signed the Leeds-born striker in August but the transfer was cancelled as the appropriate paperwork had not been submitted in time.
Heckingbottom has been linked with a summer move for McBurnie as well as current Barnsley captain Andy Yiadom who is out of contract in the summer, but he refused to go into detail on that. Asked if he ever wondered what might have been if the McBurnie deal had gone through in the summer, he said: "Yes, definitely. It's frustrating. I thought I had it done in August but it got messed up, which was hard.
"We've seen his value since and he's done what I expected him to do. I would be lying if I said I didn't like the player because I tried to sign him all season. He'll be very dangerous against us."
Since arriving at Elland Road, Heckingbottom has picked up just two wins in 13 games, with four draws and seven defeats leaving him with ten points. His win percentage of 15 is the worst on record of any Leeds boss apart from Brian Clough and Darko Milanic who each managed fewer than ten games.
Only one of his matches, a 1-0 success over Brentford, has brought a clean sheet while they have not won in four, losing three, since beating Bolton on Good Friday. Heckingbottom took over when Leeds were tenth and said his aim was to close the seven-point gap between them and the play-offs but instead it has widened to 15 points and they have moved down to 14th. He has won two, drawn two and lost two of his six matches at Elland Road so far.Leeds are still eight places and 16 points clear of their near neighbours Barnsley
With speculation mounting about his future, Heckingbottom said: "I need to win this game for my own good, regardless of who it is against."
