Mamadou Thiam is enjoying the cult hero status he has attained with Barnsley supporters but knows he needs to add to his one Reds goal.
The 22-year-old French striker has been a fans' favourite since before he signed for Barnsley after a summer trial. He has improved his English in the last three months and gave his first press conference as a Barnsley player yesterday. He said: "I love the fans. Before I signed, I saw all the fans love me. I am very happy about that and I am very excited to be here.
"I love the town. I love the players on my team. I live in Barnsley, it is a quiet place and I like that. I have been recognised one or two times. My dream when I was a boy was to play football in England and Barnsley have realised my dream."
Thiam says the influence of Barnsley's French chief executive Gauthier Ganaye, who played a part in the transfers of him and his compatriot Dimitri Cavare, has been important.
"Gauthier has helped me and I am very happy he is here. He is French and, when you come here and you don't speak English, it is very difficult.When I came here my English was very bad, now it is not good but a bit better."
Thiam has played 11 games for the Reds, nine as a substitute, and scored a penalty at Millwall in September. He made an impact as a half-time substitute in Tuesday's 3-0 loss at Reading, partnering Tom Bradshaw in a 4-4-2 after Barnsley abandoned the one striker approach they have used for most of the season. Thiam said: "It is not a good thing to score just one goal. I need to work hard in training and be better in the games. It is better with another striker next to me. It is better for me to play that way.
"I want to become a big player in the Championship. If I have more games, it will be easier for me but I have to wait and make sure I work hard in training. Paul Heckingbottom talks with me a lot and helps me a lot so I am happy about that. The Championship is very difficult because it is more physical and fast than France.
"It is a high tempo. The training is a lot harder than in France, but I think it's better. When I played my first game, it was difficult for me. I am strong but to play 90 minutes in the Championship is not easy and I need to work a lot towards that."
