Huddersfield Town scored an unexpected last-minute winner in last night’s game against Blackburn. The game was entertaining to watch and featured two teams trying to play football the right way, even if it didn’t always come off.
The win extends Town’s impressive run of home victories to five and propels them into the top half of the table. While it needed Pipa and Naby Sarr to combine with an exceptional piece of play for the winner, I think the victory was just about deserved. Town weren’t perfect but did manage to do enough to come out worthy winners.
Ryan Schofield – 8 out of 10
The save from point blank range against Armstrong gets better with every replay. His positioning was excellent and his reflex save pulled the ball from behind him to stop it going in. His distribution continues to be no nonsense and it feels like we’ve made far fewer defensive errors since he came into the team. It’s not going to be easy for Hamer to force his way back into the team after a string of excellent performances form the young stopper.
Harry Toffolo – 6 out of 10
His crossing was a bit off, which meant the good opportunities he carved out were squandered. His linkup play with O’Brien was good and Toffolo frequently overlapped to get forward. He seems to get an unreasonable number of shooting opportunities for a fullback, unfortunately he couldn’t make the most of a couple of excellent chances that came his way. I wouldn’t say that Toffolo’s form is bad right now but he’s definitely dipped a little lately. Most likely due to the ridiculous number of games he’s played in close succession.
Naby Sarr – 9 out of 10
I would have given Naby Sarr a good score purely based on his defensive duties, where he was commanding in the air and much more accurate with his long range distribution but his goals make him a natural choice for man of the match. The opener showed off his raw power when he pounded in a header from close range and the winner displayed a delicacy of touch that is exceptionally rare in a defender of his size. His faults have been well documented in previous matches but this game should be remembered for Sarr’s contribution being the difference between victory and defeat. While the whole team can take some credit, Sarr made the two vital contributions we needed to come out winners.
Rarmani Edmonds-Green – 7 out of 10
He just looks so good on the ball and seems perfectly at home at this level. His pace helped us out of several jams last night and he continues to almost float around the pitch. I’d like to see him getting a bit more physical in the box as he looks strong enough to dominate opponents but might be a bit too nice at times.
Pipa – 7 out 10
Wasn’t always able to shake free of his marker but still made plenty of runs from deep. His looping through ball for the winner was inventive and excellently executed. Naby Sarr won the headlines but the perfectly weighted pass that picked out his run was superb too.
Jonathan Hogg – 7 out of 10
Another very solid game from “The General” as he seems to get called these days (though it sounds like the kind of nickname people make up for themselves and try to get other people to use). Lucky to get away with a nasty clattering of a Blackburn player without a booking but he seems to thrive on getting stuck into the physical battle. He’s not just blood and guts these days though, he’s unquestionably better now at receiving the ball in tight spaces and moving it along accurately and quickly.
Carel Eiting – 5 out of 10
Still going missing for long periods of the game and doesn’t seem to be making use of the full range of passing he has available to him and is instead playing it safe. I’m convinced he’s only getting picked still because the alternatives are in even worse form. If he isn’t dropped then he needs to play himself back into form somehow. After looking pretty great in November he’s now not doing the things he did naturally back then and seems to be doubting himself. Carlos has shown a knack for getting the best out of players, so I’m hopeful he’ll be able to draw out Eiting’s best football again.
Juninho Bacuna – 6 out of 10
While he didn’t do anything inspirational he also didn’t mess about either. He seems like he’s more willing to work hard for the team and less likely to try and take on the whole opposition on his own. He played high up enough on the pitch to be classed as a striker but wasn’t able to get into scoring positions too often. He had a decent opportunity in the sort of area Josh Koroma is lethal but his curling right foot shot wasn’t quite good enough.
Lewis O’Brien – 6 out of 10
Played about as well as a midfielder forced to play on the wing is likely to play. Made some very nice runs and was very busy. His final ball wasn’t good enough once more though I did think there were some signs of improvement in him. While we lack fit wingers he looks like the most reliable option to occupy that area of the pitch even if he doesn’t have the natural skill set of a winger.
Isaac Mbenza – 6 out of 10
Put in a beauty of a corner for the first goal and nearly scored directly from a cheeky free kick which surprised Blackburn’s keeper. In open play he was a little bit quieter than usual but still made some nice runs and covered well for Pipa when the rightback roamed upfield.
Fraizer Campbell – 6 out of 10
Played well without looking like scoring, which is so often the case. He did a particularly good job of winding up the opposition defence and winning fouls. He’s the sort of player that must be really annoying to play against because he’s always charging the ball down and niggling away both physically and verbally. Not nice to play against but exactly the kind of player you want on your side.
Hmm. Hard to be critical of your scores…..but I must.
I could argue with you about Schofield’s 8 as I do think he was at fault for the Blackburn goal. But that first half save was fantastic so I’ll let you get away with it.
What has a player got to do to get a 10? For a centre back to be pretty much faultless at the back AND to score both goals, surely he deserves a 10?
At the other end, I thought O’Brien was slightly better than you evidently did and worthy of a 7. And Eiting worse than you thought where a 5 is generous.
I’m pleased to see you haven’t gone completely overboard with praise just because we won. But for Sarr’s late winner, I think we’d have been whinging a bit more.
Thanks for you comment Simon.
I know what you mean about Schofield’s parry for the equaliser. It came at him quickly but he shouldn’t have put it back into the danger zone. But he was good for the rest of the game and saved what looked like a certain goal.
I think mostly sixes and sevens is about right for the game. Not perfect but good enough on the whole.
Do you think that Schofield had any time to decide where the ball would go after he stopped it at full stretch. It was a good save from Schofield who was only put in that position by a very tired Pipa who just helped the attack along. After Schofield saved there were at least 3 defenders who could have stopped the goal but they didn’t react fast enough.
Fair point, John. Although the top goalkeepers know instinctively when to catch or punch. Simply to parry is rarely a good option. But that first half save was so good that I’ve forgiven & forgotten his ‘error’ already.
Everyone deserved an extra point for me apart from Eiting.
Great comments as usual though.
When we get our passing right we look like a very good team, as in mainly the second half; when it’s poor, that’s when the opposition capitalize, as in mainly the first half, when swift counter attacking creates vulnerabilities.
I wouldn’t disagree much about your scores and comments, except as previously stated Eiting and Sarr, the other one was Bacuna, I thought he was industrious, yes industrious and at his best his passing is very good, superior to most, in terms of what he sees, his weight and direction of direction of distribution, some of his first time lay-offs were very well executed. A couple of goal attempts added gloss.
A comfortable mid-table position is a mouth watering prospect
For the second game in succession our two youngsters were confident and inspired. They are both very calm and measured with the ball at there feet, definitely an upgrade on the previous occupants.
Agree with scores except Sarr and Eiting, should have been 10 and 4 respectively.. Eiting was missing for large parts of the game… I think with a half decent striker we could easily be top 6. The Manager has done an incredible job with the players at his disposal…
It’s a bit of a rollercoaster at the moment, a great win one week, then a deflating defeat the next.
We’re not a millions miles off the playoffs so hopefully we can get a run together, however the fixtures over the next few weeks aren’t easy.
Edmund Green’s physicality will grow out of maturity, when it does, he’d be better using it OUTSIDE the box.