Huddersfield Town take on Leicester on New Year’s Day at the King Power Stadium. It comes just two days after Town’s 0-0 draw with Burnley and marks the end of the hectic Christmas schedule for Town.
Here’s a look forward to Monday’s game…
Predicted lineup
David Wagner has consistently played weakened teams in the cups since he’s been at Town, so I suspect he’ll pick the best available team for Leicester and a weakened team in the FA Cup next weekend. For Leicester this might mean bringing in fresh legs in some areas but sticking with his mainstays in others.
Lössl, Zanka and Schindler should start again. Both fullbacks will switch, as Hadergjonaj went off at half-time against Burnley and Malone had a bit of a stinker.
Hogg and Mooy are our two first-choice midfielders but I wouldn’t be surprised to see one of them rested against Leicester. Given it’s likely to be a game we have to fight more to get on the ball I’m going to predict Mooy is rested. Wagner has played Mooy every game so far in the Premier League but I think he’ll keep him on the bench on Monday.
Tom Ince struggled against Burnley and Joe Lolley looked fairly bright, so I think Wagner might give him the nod. I’ve said Lolley will start in the last two previews and was wrong on those occasions but I feel more confident in this prediction this time. We’re short of other options on the wings, so Quaner and VLP will probably keep their spots.
Upfront I think we’ll swap Depoitre for Mounié. Based on current form I’d want Depoitre to play, but I don’t think he’s fit enough to play two games in three days, given the level of intensity he plays with.
How will David Wagner approach this game?
Leicester are in the group of teams that are just beneath the top six. Too good to be in the relegation scrap but not good enough to compete for Champion League’s spots (apart from in their historic title-winning season).
Because it’s a better team we’re playing, it’s away from home, and we looked weary against Burnley, I think it could be a more restrained approach. I think we’ll stick with the 4-2-3-1 formation but our pressing game might be restricted to our own half. This will mean Leicester have plenty of possession in their half, but we’ll close down the space quickly when they approach our penalty area.
With the ball I think we’ll look to play on the break, sitting a bit deeper and not committing too many players forward in case we lose possession. This will mean the fullbacks won’t overlap on the wings too much and the wingers will play wider and deeper to cover Leicester’s fullbacks.
Of course, I could be completely wrong and we’ll try to play Leicester off the park. That would be great to watch, but would also be a very risky strategy.
Last meeting – Huddersfield Town 1-1 Leicester
The last time we played Leicester we had to settle for a one all draw, despite Kachunga scoring a late goal which was incorrectly ruled out. Town were impressive that day, matching Leicester in footballing terms.
Depoitre showed his strength and quality by swatting away Harry Maguire and finishing into the bottom corner, after he latched onto Sabiri’s excellent through ball.
TerrierSpirit.com Prediction: Leicester 0-1 Huddersfield
I suspect this game won’t be a classic, as both sides will be tired from the recent fixture congestion. Rather than quality, it may be decided on fitness and concentration. If Town can keep their discipline, cut out errors, and capitalise on any opportunities then a narrow win may be possible.
Excellent analysis. Thanks.