YATES KEEN TO LEARN FROM ROY AT FOREST
DANIEL STENDEL has been enjoying views from the top since he climbed Mount Snowdon last autumn.
With Jurgen Klopp at the Premier League summit with Liverpool and Norwich manager Daniel Farke leading the Championship, Stendel’s 19-game unbeaten run with League One Barnsley has been a lessheralded German success story on English football’s upper slopes.
And in cod’s own country, Stendel is even a convert to fish and chips.
Cultural attaches from the Fatherland have not always taken to the chippy like a bratwurst to mustard, but now you’d batter believe it – the Tykes are going up and their manager enjoys a slab of fish.
In fairness, when Stendel met Mirror Sport’s connoisseur of Yorkshire haute cuisine for lunch at the Wetherby Whaler in Wakefield, he drew the line at mushy peas.
But there is nothing soft about Barnsley, who had four players – Adam Davies, Ethan Pinnock, Cameron McGeehan and Alex Mowatt – recognised by their peers in League One’s team of the season.
And Stendel’s first season in England has been a revelation considering he’d never heard of Barnsley when they came calling. “At first, looking on the map, I thought maybe it was Burnley, not Barnsley, who wanted me,” he said. “I knew it was a town in the north of England, quite close to Manchester, but not much more.
“Then I met the owners, and when they said they wanted a team which was more brave, I said, ‘OK, that’s the way I like to play.’
“I warned them I didn’t speak English very much, but they said, ‘No problem, it’s more important you come to work for us’.
“After two weeks I said, ‘Let’s do this’ and for me it was a big adventure in a new country, a new league and a new language.
“The team is very different now, but the feeling is good: We want to change the atmosphere and the style, we want to improve, we want to play. It’s been everything I hoped – and even better. The people have been amazing. My family are back home in Germany, but I don’t feel alone.
“When we climbed towards the top of Snowdon, everyone you meet says, ‘Keep going’ or, ‘Good luck’ or just, ‘Hello.’ Of course, promotion is the target. But we are not at the top of the mountain yet.” Stendel, 44, immersed himself in English football culture by going to the pub to watch England’s World Cup games. At first, he was just another face in the crowds at the Garrison in Barnsley. But when Germany were knocked out in the group stage, he bought an England shirt and cheered on the Three Lions. He said: “When I first arrived, I was living in a hotel and I could have stayed in my room to watch the games, but I wanted to enjoy the atmosphere.
“OK, I’m in England, so let’s join the English people as they support the Three Lions. Standing in front of a TV, with all the singing and cheering, was fantastic.
“I don’t think they knew who I was at first. But after two or three games, by the semi-final, they know me. They were all my friends.”
Brought up in Frankfurt an der Oder, in East Germany, Stendel was 15 when the Berlin Wall came down and unification opened up a whole new world. He went on to play with former Huddersfield manager David Wagner at Gütersloh and World Cup winner Per Mertesacker at Hannover, where he cut his teeth as a manager.
“I had a happy childhood,” said Stendel. “But before the wall came down, everything in the supermarket seemed to be in black and white. Afterwards, it was all in colour.”
While promotion rivals Sunderland and Portsmouth are squabbling over the Checkatrade Trophy tomorrow, Stendel’s team could go seven points clear of both in second place if they beat Coventry.
The Tykes are going to take some stopping. They are absolutely frying. RYAN YATES is asking Roy Keane for tips as he models his game on the Manchester United legend.
Martin O’Neill’s arrival as Nottingham Forest boss in January, along with assistant Keane, has seen the midfielder, 21, become one of the first names on the team-sheet. He did not play in the Championship under Aitor Karanka, but has started nine games since.
Ahead of today’s visit by Swansea, Yates (above) regularly asks Keane for advice – the Irishman broke through at the City Ground before moving to United.
“It helps massively,” Yates said of Keane’s influence. “He played at the top for many years. If he can give me just a bit of knowledge it’s going to help.
“I’ve been trying to chat to him, but I didn’t want to come across as too eager!”
vChampionship: Madejski Stadium, 3pm
LIAM MOORE says his battle to keep Reading in the Championship is fuelled by the impact relegation would have on everyone at the club. The Royals are one place and one point above the bottom three going into today’s visit by in-form Preston. Defender Moore (below) said: “Relegation would be tough personally, it wouldn’t be good for your reputation. “But you’ve got staff – training ground and stadium, it changes other people’s lives. “The responsibility is on us to get out of this mess. That’s something I take on my shoulders quite heavily.”