Barnsley skipper Alex Mowatt has been delighted with the impact of new signing Carlton Morris since his signing last month.
Morris joined the Reds in the January transfer window from Championship rivals Norwich City for an undisclosed fee.
After coming off the bench in four consecutive matches, the forward was given a first start last weekend away at Brentford, and rewarded head coach Valerien Ismael with his first Barnsley goal to help them to an impressive scalp.
And he followed that up on Wednesday night with a second goal in as many matches, making an impact as a substitute with a stylish finish from distance which went in off the post, to break the deadlock against Blackburn Rovers.
After that 2-1 win in which Mowatt also netted, the Barnsley captain enthused about the impact the 25-year-old made on the game and has made at the club since joining.
“He’s been class to be fair, he’s a funny lad,” he told The72. “Tonight I just thought he was excellent, I thought he was our best player when he came on. I’m buzzing for him that he’s got two goals (since signing).
“I think tonight was the best game I’ve seen him play so far. He looks really good, and he gives us something different as well.”
Mowatt, who has yet to commit his future to Barnsley beyond the end of this season, has particular reason to be happy with Morris, with the two already appearing to strike up quite the partnership.
The skipper’s short pass set him up to open the scoring against Blackburn, and the favour was returned in the final minute of normal time at Oakwell with Morris finding Mowatt to round the goalkeeper and secure the result.
“I was on (for a pass) quite often in the first half but didn’t get the ball as much,” Mowatt said, “but when Carlton came on he found me quite a lot to be fair, and I enjoyed it. He brought me into the game.”
For Barnsley boss Ismael, the impact of Morris and fellow substitutes, including another new signing in loan addition Daryl Dike, against Blackburn proved justification for wanting to improve the quality and depth of his squad, especially up front, in the transfer window.
It was a point the Frenchman was keen to make when asked about Morris’ fine few days in front of goal, saying: “Not only Carlton, Dike as well. That’s why we worked on the squad.
“When I came I knew we had to do something in the transfer windows, and now we can see how important it was to do something because today (against Blackburn) it was the game-changer for us.
“For sure it will give the guys more confidence because we can battle on all the levels. We saw last week we had to press, today we had to fight, and we have more weapons now to react.”
