Huddersfield Town head to the Potteries to take on Stoke in the Premier League. In a quirk of the fixture scheduling, our second game of the season against Stoke comes three weeks after the first. It’s a big game for both teams, with Stoke welcoming new manager Paul Lambert and Town hoping to bounce back from a recent dip in form.
Here are my thoughts about the system Town will play and which players David Wagner will pick for the match. These are my ill-informed opinions, so it’s quite possible we’ll play a completely different team.
What formation will Town play against Stoke?
The question of formations under David Wagner is generally an easy one to answer. He’s a 4-2-3-1 man, and has built his philosophy around playing in this shape. However, we’ve been consistently caught out by teams playing three at the back this season, which may be a flaw in our system (though could just as easily be the quality of the opposition players).
I think the arrival of Kongolo will mean we’ll see David Wagner experiment with a three at the back formation. We saw it in the dying stages of our defeat to West Ham last weekend, but the game was over as a contest by that stage so it was hard to judge how effective it was.
At some stage in the next few games, I think we’ll see Kongolo, Zanka and Schindler starting as a back three but I’m not certain Stoke is the game to do it in. Stoke have most recently played with a flat back four, and Paul Lambert played 4-2-3-1 when he managed Wolves last season, so I suspect we’ll start with our traditional shape against Stoke.
However, we may see a tactical change to three centre-backs if we need to make a tactical change. I’m hopeful that this could be a way to move to a more attacking system without leaving us hopelessly exposed at the back.
Goalkeeper: Lössl to keep his place
Lössl’s passing came under fire last week because he made some sloppy errors, including the pass to Lolley which led to the opening goal. West Ham had clearly done their homework on him and knew they could tempt him to play short if they gave just enough room at the back.
It’s worth mentioning that Lössl has been a hero on several occasions for Town this season, and his distribution has created chances and given us different ways of playing. I think the occasional error is the unfortunate price we have to pay for having an otherwise excellent keeper.
Defence: Malone and Smith out, Kongolo and Hadergjonaj in
Pritchard and Kongolo had to settle for places on the bench against West Ham but both should make their first Premier League starts at the weekend. Like a kid with new toys, Wagner will want to see what his latest acquisitions can add to the team.
I can’t see Zanka or Schindler being dropped, so Malone is most likely to make way and Kongolo will play in his less favoured position of left-back. Or we’ll lose an attacking player to make space for three centre-backs, but as mentioned above, I think Wagner will initially stick to our 4-2-3-1 system.
Smith has taken some criticism from the vocal minority of fans that love to pick out a scapegoat when we lose. While I think a lot of the abuse is unwarranted, it may be worth giving Flo a run out at right-back.
Midfield: Keep the faith with Mooy and Hogg
Mooy and Hogg both had poor games against West Ham, but so did the rest of the team. Both have done enough over this season and last to keep their partnership in the middle.
Billing’s return to fitness and Williams quality means we’ve got options in the middle, but I’d still see Hogg and Mooy as our best central pairing despite recent form.
Mooy’s performance was particularly alarming last weekend as he’s been so consistent during his time at Town. Even games where he’s not been his best, he’s often still been good by any other standards. Last week he had a stinker, but he’s still vital to our success and I’m certain he’ll bounce back.
Attacking three behind the striker: Pritchard to come in for Lolley
Pritchard will surely play in the number ten role, so that means one of VLP, Ince or Lolley will have to make way. Lolley scored a great goal against West Ham but also had a hand in the first goal we conceded and his first touch looked heavy at times. So I’ll pick him to drop to the bench.
Ince and van La Parra have something to prove in this match after struggling recently. Pritchard’s arrival means Ince has the advantage of being able to play in his preferred position out wide, rather than as a number ten. Some of the old criticisms of van La Parra’s final product have crept in lately, after his excellent form earlier in the season. It would be wonderful to see him silence his doubters with another goal.
Striker: Mounié in for Depoitre
Up front, I’m going to be controversial and pick Mounié ahead of Depoitre. I know the big Belgian has done a lot of good work for Town and he’s got a great song too. However, he’s not the kind of striker that takes up positions where he can easily score, mostly because he’s working his socks off in other areas of the pitch.
Mounié may look lazy at times, but he does make sure he’s ready and waiting for chances to come his way. He might not finish them all, but he’ll regularly be in the right place at the right time. Now we’ve got Pritchard to pull the strings behind the striker I’d hope we’re going to see better service and more for our strikers to feed off, so it could be Mounié’s time to shine.
Score prediction: Stoke 2-3 Huddersfield Town
After our defensive frailties were ruthlessly exposed by West Ham last week, I can’t see us keeping a clean sheet but I think we’ll score more than Stoke anyway.
The West Ham game was a flat performance from Town, so I’m sure we’ll be fired up and fight hard against Stoke. I don’t believe David Wagner will allow another under-par performance and he’ll get Town playing with passion and bravery again.