Reasons to feel positive about Huddersfield Town this season

As has become an annual tradition in this blog, I’ve divided my season preview article into two, one full of positives and the other negatives. Because there’s already enough negativity about Huddersfield Town, I thought it would be best to start with the more upbeat look at the season ahead. The negative one is also available on the blog now though, if you’d prefer to make yourself feel glum!

For those that like to live on the sunny side of the street, here are my reasons to feel positive about Huddersfield Town’s chances this season.

We’ve got Neil Warnock

While Neil Warnock is now 74 years old, he described his achievements at Huddersfield Town as his greatest yet in management, so you could argue that he’s just reaching his prime! And while in the past we’ve favoured a strategy of scouring Europe to find the hottest new managerial prospect and giving people their first job in football management, there’s something to be said for having the most experienced football manager working today at the helm. 

Things might not be perfect at Huddersfield Town, in terms of the depth of the squad or the experience of the players but Neil Warnock is a manager that knows exactly what he’s doing and with over 1600 games under his belt, there’s no scenario he hasn’t faced before and there’s a kind of relaxed demeanor he brings to the job that spreads a sense of calm around the place. Which is almost the exact opposite of the manic, crazy-eyed energy his predecessor brought to the role. 

During Mark Fotheringham’s time at Town last season, despite him having quite a long time in charge, I never really knew what kind of football he was trying to get the team playing. There wasn’t much identity on the pitch despite what he might have said in press interviews. With Neil Warnock’s approach there’s always a signature style and I think we’ll see more of it this season now he’s had a preseason to get them drilled and has shaped the squad a bit more by letting go of the players he doesn’t fancy and (hopefully) bringing in a few players too. 

I noticed during set pieces against Heerenveen that we now look like a pretty big team. Even without Hudlin on the pitch, Rudoni, Ruffels, Edwards, Edmonds-Green and Ward are all a decent threat in the air alongside the central defenders, so at set pieces we’re a threat. And we’ve now got a long throw specialist, in Tom Edwards, so throw-ins can become a chance to get the ball in the box too. For a team that struggled for goals last season, bringing a bit of height and physical presence on the pitch makes sense. Add in players who can cross like Koroma and Thomas then you can see an approach being worked on.   

The current squad did remarkably well once Neil Warnock got them playing

While you could worry that the squad we’re starting with this season is basically the same as the one that struggled so much last season but that doesn’t factor in how much the team underperformed until Neil Warnock came in. So if you see the season as only really starting from Warnock’s arrival, then there’s not too much to worry about. 

It was like a cloud was lifted over the club when Fotheringham left and Warnock came in, and a number of players started to suddenly play better as a result. So there’s every chance the same players and same manager will be competitive in the Championship. Our end-of-season form was good enough for the playoffs, and I think that’s probably a bit unlikely but the squad and manager we’ve got should be capable of avoiding (yet another another) relegation scrap.

The transfer window is still open

It’s clear that this transfer window hasn’t gone to plan so far but there’s plenty of time to get deals over the line. In fact, the market for Premier League loanees is only just starting up, as the top-tier teams settle on their likely squads for the campaign ahead and decide who they’re willing to ship out on loan.

The Neil Warnock transfer windows are always going to be a bit odd, as he’s not likely to want to listen to a recruitment team talk through their spreadsheets about targets. He prefers to use his own knowledge and contacts, so it could be that long-term investments don’t come until next summer. But I’d hope that the club backs Warnock with players that can give him a fighting chance. After tempting him out of yet another of his retirements, investing a few quid in some decent short-term deals is the least they can do for him.

We’ve not lost any key players (yet)

Most summers in recent years we’ve seen our top players leave, either to balance the books or because they wanted a move and we had little choice. Unless you have a distorted view on Etienne Camara or Duane Holmes influence, you couldn’t say we’ve sold our crown jewels this season. 

Lee Nicholls or Sorba Thomas would have been the obvious players to have cashed in on but both look to be staying as far as I can see. Early rumblings about interest in Nicholls came to nothing and Sorba Thomas seems to have hit it off with Neil Warnock and be back in the fold. I know many fans find Sorba’s personality a bit much but I think he’s good enough on the pitch to justify needing an arm around his shoulder and a bit of special treatment from time to time. 

So while we’re all quick to moan about the lack of incoming, it’s also worth celebrating the lack of outgoings too. In Nicholls we’ve for one of the best keepers in the league, Helik is one of the best defenders (his stats have been among the best for the last two seasons), nobody in the league delivers a ser piece as well as Thomas on his day and Koroma’s form at the end of last season suggested he could be coming back to his best too. So while it’s exciting to have new faces in the squad, it’s worth remembering that this team already has some quality in it.

There are some very talented youngsters in our squad

I wrote recently about the youngsters in our squad that could be due a big season this campaign, so I’ll not repeat myself here but there is a crop of talented youngsters in our squad. Here’s a list:

• Loick Ayina
• Brodie Spencer
• Josh Austerfield
• Ben Jackson
• Jaheim Headley
• Brahima Diarra
• Pat Jones
• Kian Harratt

The good thing is that these players aren’t completely wet behind the ears kids any more either.  Most have had significant playing time away on loan or have got a fair few minutes in the Championship for Town so have a bit of experience under their belt. 

John F Kennedy is quoted as saying: “The Chinese use two brush strokes to write the word ‘crisis’. One brush stroke stands for danger; the other for opportunity. In a crisis, be aware of the danger–but recognize the opportunity”. So our lack of squad depth means we’re going to call upon these youngsters to fill in frequently. While that is a risky strategy, these players need to show they’re ready for the Championship and when they get their chance they need to grab it with both hands.

This may sound ridiculously optimistic now but in a few months time we may be delighted we didn’t sign a striker because it allowed Kian Harratt the opportunity to come in and establish himself as our most exciting academy striker since Andy Booth. 

And…the longer term future could be very promising for Town

I feel pretty good about the way things stand at Town at the moment. I think the season ahead should be fun with Warnock at the helm and his vast experience should hopefully steer us clear of relegation trouble. Meanwhile, off the pitch, we should hopefully see the new era of Huddersfield Town take shape. At the moment it’s mostly just talk but I’ve got to say that I like the sound of the talk that I’m hearing.

It’s worth noting that Dean Hoyle has left us in a very good situation, with our significant debt to him being written off as part of the sale process. There is an amount due to him if we reach the Premier League but otherwise I believe we are mostly debt-free, which is pretty rare for modern football clubs. That gives us a treat platform to build for the future.

OkiSpeaking of which, I feel like Kevin Nagle, Jake Edwards and Mark Cartwright all have sounded keen to build for the future in their initial interviews. So Neil Warnock’s focus is going to be scrapping for points, week-to-week this season but the others at the club will hopefully be thinking further ahead about what happens in the post-Warnock era. He’s going to leave big shoes to fill, so I think it’s going to take a lot of careful planning to manage the transition from Warnock to the next guy. Unless the wheels completely fall off for Warnock this season and he leaves under a cloud, the next manager will always struggle to live in the shadow of his predecessor. The leadership team needs to have a plan to support the new guy to avoid some of that.

Don’t forget to read the negative Huddersfield Town season preview if you’ve not checked it out yet.