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Valerien Ismael lost his first battle against Thomas Tuchel in Germany but now has a plan... grateful for a second chance in England after flopping as a player at Crystal Palace, the Barnsley boss is ready to 'swarm' all over Chelsea

From his new home in South Yorkshire, Valerien Ismael casts his mind back to south London.

It was January 1998, a year in which Barnsley basked in the glow of their only campaign in the Premier League, when Ismael swapped Strasbourg for Crystal Palace. He was a young centre half, signed for a club record £2.75million. He would come to appreciate the value of timing.

During 10 months spent at Selhurst Park, Ismael worked under five managers — from Steve Coppell to Terry Venables via the joint tenure of Attilio Lombardo and Tomas Brolin and a caretaker shift from Ray Lewington.