Predicted Huddersfield Town XI to take on Coventry City

After last weekend’s game against Blackpool was postponed due to a frozen pitch, it feels like forever since we had some football to talk about. So I’m actually pleased this game was moved forward to this weekend, even though it was harsh on those fans that had already made travel plans for the previous midweek date it was planned for. 

Had this game not been rearranged to today, we’d have faced another Town-less Saturday, and as much as they are a near-constant source of disappointment and frustration, I actually really miss it when they don’t play. I’m not going to pull at the thread of why I seem to enjoy something that also brings me such pain, this is a football blog, not therapy. Instead, I’m going to try and predict the team Mark Fotheringham will select against Coventry today. 

Goalkeeper: Bilokapic

A mischievous part of me was tempted to put Ryan Schofiel down after his recall from his loan in Scotland yesterday but I don’t want to anger Town fans. I think that was more because Schofield wasn’t getting games and they’ll try to foist him out on loan to somewhere else who is willing to take a chance on a keeper than once looked promising but has lost his confidence in recent seasons. Surely he hasn’t been brought back to compete for a place in our team, right?

Instead, I think we’ll be seeing young Nicholas Bilokapic between the sticks again. I can’t say I’m that happy about another youngster being thrown in at the deep end, as this chance hasn’t been earned, it has come because of poor planning and penny-pinching by the club’s hierarchy. I like the look of Bilokapic but I’m not sure he’s ready for this level and in the paragraph above I spoke about a keeper that showed even greater potential that the club’s mismanagement pretty much ruined his career by exposing him too much, too early in his development. The lack of an experienced keeper suggests they’re toying with doing the same again with Bilokapic. It might play out differently with this young keeper but it feels like a huge risk.

Defence: Lowton, Lees, Helik, Pearson, Ruffels

Matt Lowton looks like a smart addition to the back line and improves Town even when he’s barely played this season, so presumably, he’ll get better with more games and he’ll show even more. Whether he’ll be able to cope with the hectic fixture list at his age is debatable but while he’s fit and available he’s a quality option.

Similarly, our central defence suddenly looks very experienced and solid with Matty Pearson returning to the starting lineup. Alongside Helik and Lees, he forms a very sturdy and no-nonsense base that the team can build from. It might be that Pearson still can’t do 90 minutes after his return from injury but he’s so much of an upgrade on Will Boyle, he should play whatever he can. 

Josh Ruffels is probably the weak link in this side but he’s actually played a lot of games this season and not made too many horrendous errors. If there was a better option we would go with it. But all the alternatives are too young and inconsistent. I like Ben Jackson and in time he will most likely be a better player than Ruffels but he isn’t yet reliable at Championship level and for every great moment he has the potential for a costly mistake, like most young players.

Midfield: Rudoni, Hogg, Kasumu, Holmes

Now Sorba Thomas is gone for the rest of the season, a lot of the creative workload will fall on the shoulders of Jack Rudoni. At least until the new signings are bedded in and injury-free. He’s been in decent form lately but is still not yet off the mark in terms of goals and he will probably be disappointed he hasn’t had more than the four assists he’s registered so far. Hopefully, the extra responsibility in Sorba’s absence will be good for him and he’ll start producing the end product to add to his improved build-up play.

Jonathan Hogg continues to be worth having in the team despite him being at the veteran stage of his career. We rely on him as much for his presence and his organisation of the team as for the things he directly does to influence the game. I would have expected him to move into coaching by now but he keeps going and in fairness, he’s still doing a decent enough job.

David Kasumu made way for Scott High in the Hull game after he made some pretty bad errors in the Preston cup game that led to goals. I think that he was dropped to teach him a lesson, in the way Fotheringham likes to do, and he’ll be restored to the starting lineup for this match. I didn’t think High was awful against Hull but Kasumu has a bit more bite and hustle about him whereas High always looks a bit like he’s had too many hot dinners. I think High has probably received more stick than he deserves but I I don’t think he does himself any favours when he goes missing for long periods in games. If he plays a nice pass then he’ll happily trot about for the next five minutes without getting involved, whereas Kasumu will fly into every 50/50 without thinking twice. 

While Rudoni is a near-certain starter, the other attacking berth is very much up for grabs until Knockaert is fully fit. I suspect Holmes is probably the most likely person to get the nod, even if he’s also the least exciting. Someone such as Josh Koroma, Brahima Diarra or Joseph “The Entertainer” Hungbo could all be in with a shout. It’s hard to know what’s going on inside Mark Fotheringham’s mind. He could have fallen out with all of the players I’ve mentioned above and instead be playing himself on the wing instead for all I know. Koroma scored an unbelievable goal against Man City for the B Team the other day but in the pre-match press conference, Fotheringham was very scathing about the quality of B Team football and pretty much wrote off the chances of B Team players stepping up to the first team.

Striker: Jordan Rhodes

Martyn Waghorn won’t be allowed to play against his parent club today due to the terms of his loan, though their fans think so little of him, they would probably be desperate for him to play against them today. Even though we have more options up front, it still seems like Rhodes is significantly better than the alternatives. Kamberi seems a bit of a clogger, Simpson and Hudlin are consigned to the B Team and Harratt is the wrong type of poacher (though his lack of involvement in the B Team suggests he’ll be on the bench today). 

While Rhodes is the best option, I’m not sure he suits being a lone striker and it will be vital the likes of Rudoni and Holmes (or whichever other players are playing behind the striker) get forward to support and give him decent service. Otherwise, he will struggle to get involved in the game and be left chasing shadows.