In advance of the Premier League season starting next week, I thought I’d do a series of blogposts taking a look at Huddersfield Town’s squad. This first post will look at the goalkeeping options in the club. Then it’ll be defenders, midfielders, and finally attackers.
Jonas Lössl
When you consider Danny Ward went to Leicester for £12m it’s stunning that we managed to buy Lössl for around £2.5m, given most Town fans wouldn’t be willing to swap Lössl for Ward. The big Dane arrived at Huddersfield Town last summer with a reputation of being a liability, with the Examiner podcast saying he’d been descibed as “the worst goalkeeper in the Bundesliga”, yet he had a fine first year at Town.
There were a few occasions were errors led to conceding goals, but these moments were far outweighed by the unbelievable saves he made that kept us in games. There were several times last season where I saw a ball heading towards the goal and resigned myself to us conceding, only to see an outstretched finger tip from Lössl steer it away from danger. The perfect example of this came in the Chelsea away game, where a mad scramble in the penalty area culminated in one of the best saves in the Premier League all season from any keeper.
Lössl’s distribution has been an asset to Town too, compared to Danny Ward the season before. We try to play it out from the back wherever possible, but there are fewer times when I saw the keeper stuck for options with the ball at his feet than in the past. This isn’t because the opposition aren’t pressing forward as much, if anything that’s happening more, it’s because Lössl is confident enough to play it out under pressure.
Distribution is also one of Lössl’s biggest weaknesses as well as his biggest strength. When it goes right his passing really helps the team, and can be incredibly accurate. But there are too many times when he takes risks that aren’t required, which either put teammates under pressure or gift the opposition possession. I think he’s got enough ability to pull off risky passes most of the time, but I’d like to see him play it safe a little bit more often.
So far this preseason I’ve only seen Lössl play 45 minutes against Bologna. Unfortunately he made one poor kick out which lead to their only goal, and then conceded an indirect freekick because he picked up a back pass. A couple of mistakes in a friendly don’t undo a whole season of excellent service to the club, so I’d still want to see him starting the season as our first choice keeper.
Ben Hamer
I’ve been really impressed with Hamer so far this preseason. Lössl’s extended break following the World Cup meant that Hamer had a chance to lay down a marker, which I believe he has done. There have been some impressive saves, his distribution has been good, and he seems to command his box well too.
I’ve only seen a few glimpses of what he’s like as a person, but he comes across as a really nice guy too. Obviously his ability as a goalkeeper is what matters most, but it appears that he’s already a popular member of the squad and will fit in well with the Terrier Spirit attitude at the club.
Hamer played a few Premier League games for Leicester last season, so I’d expect he’s come to Town with the hope of getting minutes on the pitch, not to just warm the bench. I think Lössl will start as number 1, but any significant drop in form or injury will mean we’ve got a high-quality replacement ready to drop in.
Ryan Schofield
Schofield has been at Town since playing under-9 level and is a local lad, so it’s good to see that he’s getting closer to the first team. He spent a lot of last season training with our main keepers, and it seems like he’s going to be third choice this year. He’s represented England Under-20s recently and that international experience will serve him well.
It’s unknown whether he’s ready to be thrown into the first team, my suspicion is that it might be a bit too soon. However, he’ll be a reasonable backup as third choice and I’d expect him to do a job for the team if called upon. Meanwhile he’ll be able to learn plenty about his trade by training alongside two excellent goalkeepers.
Joel Coleman
Coleman joined Shrewsbury for a season-long loan last month, just after signing an extended contract with Town. It’s nice to see the club giving him a new deal before this loan, as it shows he’s part of the long-term plans but isn’t required for this season. It’s the right move all round, because Coleman needs first team football at this stage of his career, but the door is still open for him to come back to Town.
Gabriel Rosario
We signed this American 18-year-old keeper on a free after he was released from Reading’s academy. I’ve no idea if he’s any good, but my impression is we’ve signed him to play in the youth teams. So it might be a while before we see him anywhere near the first team.
TerrierSpirit.com opinion
I think that goalkeeping is an area where we’re really strong going into this season. We’ve got two keepers that played regularly in the Premier League last season, and I see either as good enough to be first choice for Town. Hamer’s arrival will lead to increased competition, which I hope should spur Lössl on to achieving more.
Goalkeeping is becoming an even more important position in modern football, as keepers are expected to do more with the ball at their feet alongside their other duties. I think the difficulty keepers at Town are always going to have is being able to play those ambitious passes out to player’s feet without occasionally getting wrong and gifting chances to the opposition.
Hamer for me.