6 things we’ve learned about Huddersfield Town this preseason

Town completed their preseason friendlies with a 1-1 draw with Montpellier FSV in a game that wasn’t all that exciting but contained some interesting moments. Clear cut chances were in short supply, but Grant made the most of the single opportunity he was given but Diakhaby and Hadergjonaj both spurned Town’s two best other chances.

It’s important not to draw too much from preseason friendlies, but here are a few things I’ve picked up from the things I’ve seen so far…

Lewis O’Brien is ready for the first team

After a season on loan at Bradford City, the Town youngster has returned looking like a seasoned pro and has turned in some eye-catching performances this preseason. He has mostly played as one of the two more advanced midfielders but could be equally effective in the deeper, Jonathan Hogg role.

He buzzes around in midfield and breaks up play very well, which obviously suits our style of play, and has the composure to drive forward in possession when the opportunity is there. Earlier in his career he played on the wings, and this shows in his willingness to run at opposition defenders.

I doubt he’ll start the season ahead of Bacuna, Hogg and (if we keep him) Mooy, but he looks like he’s more than capable of providing backup to our first choice midfielders.

We’re going to play 4-3-3 most of the time

I know some people aren’t all that bothered about tactics and shape but I’ve been interested to see the formation we’ve used this season. As far as I’ve been able to tell, Town have played 4-3-3 for nearly every minute of the preseason. This is relatively unusual, as friendlies can be a chance to experiment with weird and wonderful systems without the risk of losing points or getting knocked out of a cup.

The 4-3-3 system is well-suited to our squad, as we’ve got plenty of wide players to call upon (more on this later) and we’ve got the likes of Mooy and Bacuna that are able to play the attacking midfielder role. This is important for this system as the main striker can become stranded up front if the wingers and midfielders don’t get forward to support.

Being stuck on one particularly formation isn’t a bad thing in my eyes. David Wagner played 4-2-3-1 consistently for the most successful period of his time managing Town and was occasionally criticised for being too rigid. However, when we started playing 5 at the back and not picking wingers we started to go downhill pretty fast. I hope that Siewert sticks to his commitment to play attacking football, with three genuinely attacking players up front.

Our new signings look like good business

It’s impossible to know for sure until the season starts, but I think we’ve recruited this season. Most importantly, we’ve kept our best players and added in fresh faces without spending silly money.

Tommy Elphick adds the leadership and experience we needed. Bockhorn gives us another option at right-back, though is less experienced than Tommy Smith, who he has effectively replaced. Reece Brown and Josh Karoma are both full of potential and could become stars for Town, though it may take time for them to adjust to the Championship. Grabara, or Mr Grabby as I like to think of him, seems like he’s going to be interesting to watch. He’s only played one game for Town this preseason but managed to pull of a couple of great saves and showcased his incredible kicking ability.

Elphick is the only signing with Championship experience, so we’ve gambled a little bit with these new players. The positive about bringing in young players is that there is potential for them to get better as they go along and that’s got to be the hope for at least a few of them.

The smiles are returning to their faces

The mood around the club soured last season sometime between Mounié’s red card against Brighton and Mooy’s injury in December. There was so little to cheer and so many defeats that the morale was through the floor and it was rare to see the players looking remotely cheerful.

There has been a far more positive mood among the players this preseason and while fans only get a small glimpse behind the scenes, it seems that there is a feel-good factor around the squad now. Weeding out the bad apples, bringing in some fresh faces and being relieved from the pressure relegation brings has changed the atmosphere and this bodes well.

The real test of this more positive feeling around the club will come when we hit our first sticky patch in the Championship. It’s inevitable, given the rigours of a 46-game season, that we’ll have a bad run. If we can survive one of these bumpy spells without losing the team spirit then it will be a god sign for the rest of the season.

Town have a lot of options in the final third… but do we have the quality we need?

Here’s a quick run down of Town’s attacking players in the current squad:

• Diakhaby
• Pritchard
• Mbenza
• Grant
• Mounié
• van La Parra
• Kachunga
• Quaner
• Karoma

That’s nine first team players for three starting positions, with youngsters in the academy also hoping to get a chance at some stage too. So there’s a real abundance of players to choose from up front and all have been given a chance in the preseason to stake a claim.

My concern is that we’ve got the quantity but, Grant aside, we’re lacking in quality up front. While there’s potential for some of these players to kick on and score regularly, many struggled last season in the Premier League. Perhaps the new mood in the camp and more generous defences in the Championship will bring more confidence in the final third, but I’m slightly concerned.

To finish on a more optimistic note, the attackers have looked a threat in preseason and the various combinations have proved that we can present a variety of problems to opposition defences.

Mooy isn’t the type of player to bust a gut in preseason

Aaron Mooy has played an incredible number of games in the three seasons he’s played for Huddersfield Town. Barring injury or international duty, he’s been an automatic choice in midfield. Alongside his Town commitments, he’s travelled the globe to represent Australia in International competition. So it’s not a huge surprise that the Aussie midfielder has had a fairly laid back preseason.

While he’s still shown moments of class in friendlies, he has mostly trotted around at a steady pace and not shown his usual hustle. Given the amount of times he’s produced for Town, I think Aaron Mooy is entitled to preserve some energy during preseason and there’s no harm in him avoiding over exerting himself.

It would be easy to speculate that Mooy has held himself back because he’s got an eye on a move away from the club. I doubt this, as the club’s position on Mooy is clear and we’ll only sell if someone is willing to pay big money from him. It’s impossible to know what the rest of the transfer window holds for Town but at this stage it seems possible that Mooy will still be a Town player when the window closes.