Leicester City player ratings vs Barnsley as frustration looms against 10-men

It was a full-blooded affair in the first few minutes, John Lundstram putting in a strong challenge to set out his stall as he wore the captain's armband in just his second appearance for the club.

It was Alex McCarthy who was forced to make the first save of the match in the first five minutes. But it was City who made the breakthrough in the eighth minute.

FOLLOW ON FACEBOOK! All the latest Leicester City news on LeicestershireLive’s Leicester City Facebook page

A lovely passing move saw City make their way up the pitch, with the ball ending with Luke Thomas on the left of the box. His brilliant cross was finished off by an unmarked Cullen, who scored his second goal in as many games.

City could have doubled their lead just a few minutes later, as Sammy Braybrooke's deep cross from the left was met on the volley by Will Alves, but his effort went just wide of the right-hand post.

In the 26th minute, Barnsley were reduced to 10 men when Luca Connell caught Thomas high with a tackle. The referee instantly showed him a straight red card.

It's no surprise that with the man advantage, City looked in control of the game for the remainder of the first half. There were some good passing moves, which got the attacking players into dangerous positions, but they had to settle for 1-0 at half time.

City had the first real chance of the second half, as a Page corner caused some panic in the Barnsley box, with the goalkeeper eventually collecting. In another attack, there was nobody at the back post to turn home Alves' ball across the face of goal.

Chances came and went for Cullen, as City cut through the 10-men. But it was Barnsley who found the equaliser, when Warren O'Hora gave the ball away, and Reyes Cleary fired past McCarthy.

City pushed for the winner as time ticked down, and had a plethora of corners, but couldn't make anything of them. They had McCarthy to thank for keeping out a late Barnsley chance and had to settle for a point.

The full-time whistle saw sections of the travelling fans air their frustration. City now have three weeks until they are next back in action.

Alex McCarthy - Made a couple of saves you would expect him to make to keep a high-energy Barnsley out in the opening part of the game. Made a brilliant save right at the end. 7

Bade Aluko - Was shown an early yellow card for a pull-back, but was strong and not afraid to go forward. Often came into midfield to make up the numbers. Was replaced by Woyo Coulibaly at half time. 7

Warren O'Hora - A real steadying influence on the defence. Can play some really effective longer balls. Gave the ball away for the equaliser. 6

Wout Faes - You can see that he's more confident on the ball than Souttar or Okoli. 7

Luke Thomas - Great cross for Cullen's goal, was on the end of a nasty challenge for the red card, and jeered by the home fans since. Not afraid to get forward and support the attack. 7

Louis Page - Always available for a pass and not afraid to travel with the ball. Looks like he's having fun on the pitch, which is great to see 8

John Lundstram - You can see his experience coming to the fore, constantly talking to his teammates and showed his quality on the ball too. Tired towards the end as the game stretched. 7

Sammy Braybrooke - Great cross for Alves' chance in the first half, and was always looking to be creative, but did occasionally give the ball away 7

Will Alves - Maybe should have done better with the volley, but was always looking to cause problems down the left. 7

Liam Cullen - Took his goal well into the bottom corner, looked dangerous going forward on the right. 7

Emil Riis - Led the line well. Made a great pass to Thomas to set up Cullen's goal, almost turned provider for Braybrooke too, but didn't do too much else. 6

Woyo Coulibaly - His first appearance since the speculation over his future, did give the ball away in a dangerous area, but atoned for his mistake. Didn't look comfortable on the ball. 5

Tommy Watson - Quickly got involved, after coming on just after the eqaualiser. Was always a threat down the left, but didn't make most of the chances he got. 7

Wes Burns - Most of the attacking play was down the other side, but did beat his man when given the chance. 6

Harry Howell - Came on with around 10 minutes left to play. N/A

Bobby De Cordova-Reid - Came on with five minutes left to play. N/A

It was all going so well for City, a goal and a man up at Oakwell, and playing some good free-flowing stuff. The only thing that was missing was the cushion of a second goal.

City were cutting through Barnsley at some points, but just couldn’t find the final pass, or saw efforts blocked or go wayward. It felt like only a matter of time before they would go 2-0 up and then would be able to cruise to their second win in a row.

But things are never that easy with City are they? Despite the press Barnsley were putting on, they seemed more comfortable playing out from the back throughout the first hour - and it was paying off by getting the attacking players into dangerous positions.

But, Barnsley capitalised on a wayward pass by Warren O’Hora, who otherwise looked steady and composed. Despite the dominance and the numerical advantage, City were suddenly pegged back.

They tried to push for another goal, but that left them more open at the back than they were throughout the rest of the game. In the end, it was probably Barnsley who had the best chances to take a shock three points.

The game is pretty much the story of the season - despite the odd anomaly (Oxford at home), performances haven’t been too bad. Most City fans would have been happy at 60 minutes.

But it’s about making that dominance count. City are getting into good areas time and time again, but that has not translated into enough clear-cut chances and therefore goals.

It's then compounded by defensive errors, which give opponents way more chances than they should have.

Russell Martin now has three weeks to work with his players. There’s good signs that mustn’t be clouded by the inevitable frustration that will come with the start of the season, but there are also a lot of things that need to be worked on during the extra time on the training pitch.

Get the best Leicester City news, analysis and more straight to your Inbox!

To get it, it's a simple one-two punch.