Blog – Page 58 – Terrier Spirit – Huddersfield Town FC blog

Apr102018 by Terrier Spirit1 Comment

Does xG explain why Huddersfield Town haven’t scored many goals this season?

Tactics

A regular criticism of Huddersfield Town under David Wagner is that we don’t score enough goals. Getting promoted with a negative goal difference last season shows how we’ve managed to turn the goals we score into results. We’ve also managed to stay clear of the relegation zone for most of this season so far despite having the second worst goal difference in the Premier League. In this article I’m going to take a look at some stats that might explain why Town score so few goals using the xG (expected goals) stats from the understat website. Is it the players? The tactics? Bad luck? Read on to find out. I’d like to apologise up front to anyone that’s not into football stats. I understand the arguments against getting lost in the numbers and how you can’t easily break a fluid game like...

Apr82018 by Terrier SpiritNo Comments

5 thoughts about Town’s draw with Brighton

Matches

Huddersfield Town came away from the south coast with a point after drawing 1-1 with Brighton. It could have been a victory for the Terriers after Brighton had a man sent off around the 75-minute mark. But Brighton missed some big chances so it could have been a defeat. Here are a few of my thoughts on the game. A much better performance from Town Last week’s defeat against Newcastle was disappointing because of the way Town played more than the result. We sat deep and invited the opposition onto us. Against Brighton Town were back to their aggressive pressing football and it made a difference. Town played more like the home team, dominating the game with 59% possession and notching up over 500 passes in the game. There were a lot more chances in the game too. We managed to get...

Apr72018 by Terrier Spirit1 Comment

Predictions for the Brighton away game: Tactics, starting XI, and score

Matches

Huddersfield Town head into the business end of the season now, with just six games remaining. We’re hovering perilously over the relegation zone in 16th place, with three of our last games against top-six opposition there’s pressure on Town to start picking up points. Today's game against Brighton is a chance to do just that. Brighton aren’t clear of trouble yet either, a win for Town will see them draw level with the Seagulls on 34 points for the season. They have a similarly tricky run in as Town, so will also be eager to get a result today. Tactics Town should play against the Seagulls I can understand why David Wagner tried to play a defensive system against Newcastle last weekend, and we’d be celebrating his tactical acumen if we’d have been able to score a couple of breakaw...

Apr12018 by Terrier Spirit5 Comments

4 reasons to be positive after Huddersfield Town’s defeat to Newcastle

Matches, Opinion

Huddersfield Town turned in another poor performance against Newcastle, beaten 1-0 in a game where they showed little attacking intent. It leaves Town hovering perilously above the relegation zone and leaves many fans feeling nervous. It’s not all doom and gloom. Here are some reasons for Huddersfield Town fans to feel positive right now. West Brom, Swansea, Crystal Palace and Southampton all lost too It seems that the bottom third of the table have all hit bad form at the same time and nobody around us is picking up points. Town can’t rely on relegation rivals losing every week, but the total points needed to be safe might be lower than we previously thought given the way Southampton, West Brom and Stoke (who play Arsenal this weekend) are all struggling. While the defeat to N...

Mar282018 by Terrier SpiritNo Comments

Who will partner Jonathan Hogg in midfield against Newcastle?

Matches, Opinion

Last night Huddersfield Town issued a statement saying both Aaron Mooy and Philip Billing had to return early from international duty because they’ve picked up injuries. Added to the fact that Danny Williams is already out for the rest of the season, these injuries could seriously disrupt Town’s midfield for their upcoming games. What options does David Wagner have in midfield for the Newcastle game? How will it affect the team and the tactics we play? Read on to find out my opinion about the possible options. Florent Hadergjonaj It took Flo a while to get his chance at Town but recently he’s been a regular starter in the first team and has forced Tommy Smith out of the right-back position. He's also played in central midfield this season for Town, as part of a three-man defensive...

Mar212018 by Terrier SpiritNo Comments

The best Huddersfield Town blogs

Opinion, Social media

As it’s the international break and there’s nothing much to talk about I thought I’d do a quick summary of all the other Huddersfield Town blogs out there. Or at least the ones I know about and like. If you like this kind of article then you might also like to read my top Huddersfield Town related Twitter accounts article. TerrierBlog.co.uk Jon at the Terrier blog somehow managed to keep posting regularly on his blog despite travelling all over the world for the first half of this season. He’s back in this country now and is blogging more than ever. He’s been blogging about Town for years and has a nice mix of news and opinions, even if some of those opinions aren’t kind to Collin Quaner. My personal favourite of his blogposts this season involved a foul-mouthed tirade about th...

Mar172018 by Terrier SpiritNo Comments

Four thoughts after the 2-0 defeat to Crystal Palace

Matches, Opinion

It was another dispiriting home defeat for Town after Crystal Palace comfortably won the game 2-0. While it was bad to lose to a relegation rival, the manner of the defeat is more of a concern. Town drifted back into the style of football that saw us give away points freely in January. Here are some of my thoughts after the game. Too many players had bad days There were too many individuals in the Town team that played well below their best against Palace. To name names: Mooy, Schindler, Ince, Quaner, and Malone all put in poor performances. That’s not to say that they’re poor players, or that they aren’t good enough for this level. It’s just they didn’t do well enough on the day. Aaron Mooy’s performance was a big factor in the result, as we rely on him so heavily to provide t...

Mar102018 by Terrier Spirit3 Comments

Betting tips for Town’s game against Swansea

Matches, Opinion

Huddersfield Town take on Swansea City at the John Smith’s Stadium today, in a match that could have huge implications on this season’s Premier League relegation battle. Swansea looked to be certain to go down before bringing in Carlos Carvalhal, but since his appointment, they’ve started an impressive run of form. Town have experienced their own resurgence lately after a brief dip into the relegation zone, with two consecutive victories before last weekend’s 2-0 defeat to Spurs. This post is a bit of an experiment, I’m going to pick out three bets I think are worth a punt for the match. I’m not sure if this kind of artile will work, so let me know if the comments if you think it’s something you'd like to see more of. Short odds pick: Both teams to score - Odds: 23/20 This is a...

Mar52018 by Terrier Spirit4 Comments

4 thoughts about Town’s 2-0 defeat at Spurs

Matches, Opinion

Town were defeated 2-0 by Spurs at Wembley, in a game that had few surprises and once again showed how hard it is for smaller teams to compete against the best in the Premier League. Town weren’t particularly bad, and to lose by only two goals is no disgrace, but this game never felt like a proper contest and Spurs could have scored more if they weren’t preserving energy for their European game next week. Here are some of my thoughts about the game... A gulf in quality There wasn’t a single player in Town's starting eleven that would have been able to get into Spurs team yesterday. When every single opposition player is better than every single one of yours then there’s not much you can do, so defeat felt inevitable. If Town can manage to stay in this league for a few more s...

Mar22018 by Terrier SpiritNo Comments

3 formations Town could use for the Spurs game

Tactics

Huddersfield Town head to Wembley to face Spurs at the weekend following consecutive Premier League victories against Bournemouth and West Brom. It’s likely to be a tough afternoon for Town, and David Wagner will be scratching his head trying to think of ways to play against Spurs. Here are a few of the approaches we’ve seen so far this season when we’ve come up against the top teams in the Premier League. The standard 4-2-3-1 approach Town’s first game against a top six team came against Spurs last September and Wagner played the standard gegenpressing 4-2-3-1 system that he’s favoured during his time in Huddersfield. Arguably Town were on top for the first five minutes and the game was wide open. We crashed a shot against the crossbar when it was 0-0 and it could have been a ...