WHILE many foreign players have jetted out of England to represent their countries in the World Cup in Qatar, there's countless others striving to carve out a club career here amid less rarefied surroundings.

Among that number is Barnsley loan striker Slobodan Tedic.

The 22-year-old, who has represented Serbia up to under-21 level, will have to be content with a watching brief regarding the Eagles, managed by one of the greats of the former Yugoslavia national team and fine Red Star Belgrade line-up of the late 80s in Dragan Stojkovic.

Away from his homeland, Tedic, who joined on a season-long loan from Manchester City in the summer, has endured privations away from family and friends.

In terms of his Reds career, there has been plenty of honest endeavour and fleeting glimpses of promise, but he has not exactly hit the ground running.

His participation in Saturday's home game with MK Dons is in doubt due to an ankle injury sustained in the victory at Shrewsbury when he missed a big chance to score.

He has yet to find the net since joining the club, but when talk turns to his time at Oakwell, head coach Michael Duff is keen to provide perspective and understanding.

Duff said: "You forget that English is his second language and this is not his primary club.

Barnsley loan striker Slobodan Tedic, pictured in action against Newcastle United U21s in the Papa Johns Trophy earlier this season. Picture: Bruce Rollinson.

"He does not have a lot in terms of when he leaves the football club (each day). It's not like he has got a family network here.

"That's the thing people don't see. I have never experienced playing in a different country.

"It is about trying to make him welcome and as part of the group as possible.

"You see that he is starting to grow within the group as well and he is not an outsider. The lads have brought him in and it goes hand in hand.

"When you train well, the players go 'he's not bad', so they bring him in.

"He's had to work that out for himself a little bit because in the first game he came on against Leeds, everyone thought 'we might be onto something here'.

"He has lost his way a little bit, but got back into the team and his performances have been good. Hopefully if the performances carry on being good, then the goals will come.

"I said: 'just keep worrying about the performances', the goals will come. The moment you chase as a centre forward, that the moment you have problems as you start tightening up."

Some decent recent performances suggest that a goal - and perhaps a psychological breakthrough - might just be coming, with Duff having held an honest conversation with him earlier this season.

The Reds chief added: "I think he deserves a goal with his performances. He lost his way a little bit and we had a conversation with him.

"He's living in a different country and has been on loan for the past two or three years and at one of the biggest clubs in the world.

“So he has a lot going on. So you have to find out why he was here and we had the conversation.

"Without going into too much of it, it was a case of (saying) 'even if you don't play another minute for us, you can still go back to Manchester City as a better player'.

"You can back stronger, a better finisher and better in the air and then of a sudden, you train yourself to come in a little bit better and then you find yourself in the first team.

"You have to be ready. You need to be ready when you get a chance in football, we say it all the time."

Barnsley FC v MK Dons: Slobodan Tedic 'lost his way' but will come again, says Michael Duff