Life in the Premier League for Huddersfield Town got off to an amazing start last weekend, with a 3-0 victory over Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park. Town’s next opponents had more of a struggle in their return to the Premier League, as Newcastle United were beaten 2-0 by Spurs.
The result wasn’t the only bad news for Newcastle fans, as Jonjo Shelvey was sent off and Dummett and LeJeune both left the pitch injured. This means that three key players for Newcastle will be unavailable for their trip to the John Smith’s Stadium this Sunday.
It’s Huddersfield Town’s first-ever Premier League home game, so it’ll be a momentous occasion regardless of the result. It’s also the first of many games that Town will be playing on live TV, so an international audience will be watching the game.
Huddersfield Town v Newcastle United – Match details
Kick-off: 1.30PM, Sunday 20 August 2017
Tickets: Mostly sold out, but the odd few may pop up through the Terrier Exchange scheme.
Travel info: I wouldn’t usually bother with travel information for a home game but it looks like fans need to be aware of roadworks on Leeds Road and a new official club car park opposite the Gas Works club. There are full details on the official club website.
Likely lineup
I’m going to predict an unchanged line-up for the visit of Newcastle United. The eleven that started against Crystal Palace did such a good job that I see no reason to change things. Last week’s team will still be fresh and the rest of the squad will get a run out in the league cup match against Rotherham next Wednesday.
Last week I predicted Rajiv van Le Parra and Danny Williams would start, but both had to settle for substitutes appearances. Either could make it into the first XI against Newcastle but I suspect Billing did enough to retain his position and Kachunga will be preferred to VLP.
Pre-match comments
David Wagner was in good form in advance of the Newcastle game. He reiterated that there are no targets for Town this season and also no limits to how much they can achieve. I get the feeling the press won’t be able to leave this alone, so he’ll be having to answer the same question all season.
He also reflected on the success of the Crystal Palace game. I think he may have been trying to talk down our performance last week in an attempt to keep expectations about Town down and continue positioning us as the underdogs.
He was taken aback when one journalist suggested we are favourites in the matchup with Newcastle, but the bookies back up this opinion too. Not that being favourites means a great deal, but it does show just how far we’ve come.
4 things to watch for in the Newcastle home game
What will the stadium look like?
It’s going to be great to see all the changes that have been made to the stadium over the summer. There’ll be new dugouts, new camera gantries, more press than ever before, and loads of other changes. Pictures on Twitter suggest there’ll be TERRIERS written across the seats on the Kilner Bank too.
TERIERS word meaning belonging to the earth at Huddersfield Town we are all down to earth #huddersfieldtown #htafc #terrierspirit #UTT #💙👊✌ pic.twitter.com/r0O8eLZvDE
— David J Cowan (@davejcowan) August 17, 2017
Who will win the tactical battle?
The two games against Newcastle last season were both very interesting tactically. On both occasions, the away team sat deep, soaked up pressure and scored on the break.
David Wagner sticks rigidly to the 4-2-3-1 formation but is very flexible in the way we play within it. I suspect he’ll have given a lot of thought about how to get the better of Benitez in the tactical battle.
The expectation is that Newcastle will play like they did last time they visited, allowing Town to dominate possession but seeking to break away at speed when they get the ball. If this happens Wagner will have to decide if we should throw the kitchen sink at Newcastle and hope our improved attacking lineup can breakthrough. The alternative would be more conservative tactics, but I doubt we’ll be too negative in our first-ever Premier League home game.
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Will Mounié keep scoring?
Steve Mounié is already a Town legend after just one competitive game. If he does nothing else he scored the goals that helped Town to their first away win in the Premier League. He looked so sharp at Palace then I’d back him to get on the score sheet again this weekend.
I’ve already gone on about how much I like the look of Mounié in previous posts, but I think he could be a huge star. It’s early days in his Town career but he looks to have all the attributes of a top player.
The only slight blemish last Saturday was allowing Fosu-Mensah to catch up with him when clean through on goal. I hope he gets an opportunity to put that behind him this weekend, by getting another one-on-one chance.
What will the atmosphere be like?
Town regularly had attendances of over 20,000 last season but the reported figures included all tickets sold, rather than actual bums on seats. From seeing all the empty seats in my area I’d guess most games had three or four thousand fewer fans actually in the stadium than the reported attendance.
Against Newcastle, and for the other home games this season, I suspect every Town fan that possibly can make it to the game will. Those that can’t make it will use the Terrier Exchange scheme to allow another fan to use their seat.
With the increased attendance and the excitement about our first Premier League game, I’m expecting a huge atmosphere on Sunday. The Cowshed Loyal now have permanent seats in the south stand and I’m sure they’ll make plenty of noise, alongside the display that’s planned for kickoff.
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Opposition info: Newcastle United
Newcastle are one of the more familiar teams in the Premier League to Town, as we played them twice last season in the Championship. There was a long spell in the spring where it looked like we might push them and Brighton for the automatic promotion spots. We fell away towards the end but there’s not as much between the two sides as the 13 point difference suggests.
Newcastle manager, Rafa Benitez has won many trophies and managed at the highest levels but isn’t universally liked. I’ve never been a fan of his. He seems to produce teams that play dour football with a solid defensive base but stodgy style of play.
I expect Newcastle will play a negative type of game on Sunday, with plenty of players behind the ball and direct passes used to release their attackers on the break. Ayoze Perez, Matt Ritchie, Christian Atsu and Dwight Gayle are all capable of breaking at speed, so Town will have to be careful of not committing too many men forward.
Newcastle United fans are frustrated with their summer transfer activity since gaining promotion. Notable arrivals include Jacob Murphy, who was signed for £12m from Norwich and striker Joselu was bought from Stoke for £5m. Joselu only came in this week though, so I suspect he’ll not feature in the starting XI.
Town v Newcastle United history
Newcastle first played Huddersfield Town in 1920 in the FA Cup, with Town winning 1-0 away from home. The two sides have met 51 times in total, with the Terriers winning 21, the Toon winning 26 and the rest drawn.
The most recent matchups came in last season’s Championship, with Town winning 2-1 away from home last August and Newcastle beating us 3-1 last match. The last meeting at the John Smith’s was a bad tempered affair with Newcastle somewhat lucky to come away with a win. Town had 76% possession and 16 shots that day, but couldn’t break down a tough Newcastle side.
Terrier Spirit prediction: 2-0 to Huddersfield Town
There won’t be many games this season where the bookies’ fancy Town more than their opposition but his is one of them. Newcastle had a losing start to the season. They’ve had their best player suspended. They’re having to cobble together their defence because of injuries. The manager and fans are frustrated at the lack of big-money signings. It’s a good time to play Newcastle United.
Town are currently in a dream world. The fans, players, management, and owner are all delighted with the current situation. We’ve already got three points on the board and are placed second in the (admittedly embryonic) league table. Our new signings look to have settled in well. Our best players from last year look capable of making the step up. It’s possibly the worst time for teams to be playing against us.
I think a buoyant atmosphere at the John Smith’s Stadium and the morale in the team at the moment will mean we’ll be too much for Newcastle to cope with.
Useful and informative preview. Much appreciated. Thanks
You never ever know, Newcastle could be in for a bollocking. In comparison to the our opening result, they’ve had less than an ideal beginning. Confidence in a team is a major contributor towards a final result. I look forward to the Cowshed Loyal’s display but, sadly, I’m not in there to be part of it because silly me didn’t think of relocating there permanently and as it stands it’s just every so often I can walk through the Cowshed turnstiles. Hope isn’t lost though of relocating permanently as I could relocate during the season should movement happen with the Season Cards. That’s what the office have told me anyway, so I’ll certainly be enquiring with them sometimes to see if there’s a seat in there that can be mine on a full-time basis.
Good stuff. Thanks. Oop the Town!