Ahead of Fulham’s first away trip of the season, I spoke to James from TerrierSpirit.com (@SpiritTerrier) to get the lowdown on our opponents on Saturday, Huddersfield Town.
What are your expectations of Huddersfield this season?
We’ve flirted with relegation in the last two seasons and haven’t significantly strengthened so we’re likely to be at the bottom end of things again. A mid-table finish would be a very good outcome but, realistically, I think we’ll be in the bottom six but hopefully outside the relegation spots.
What did you make of your Town’s opening game – a 1-1 draw with Derby?
We didn’t play too badly against Derby and they were a far stronger team than the media suggested. On paper a draw seems like a poor result but we worked hard, created a few chances and were just about the better side.
What are your thoughts on Carlos Corbéran?
I like Corberán but he was overhyped when he arrived. He was billed as a cut-price Bielsa, having coached under him at Leeds previously. His system worked well up to Christmas last season but the wheels fell off in the second half and we’ve only won three games in 2021. With a bit of backing he might be able to recreate what Bielsa did at Leeds but trying to play that style of football with a bunch of free transfers and kids is asking for trouble.
Who is the Huddersfield player to look out for?
Our form player right now is Sorba Thomas. He arrived from Boreham Wood in the January transfer window but has only really broken into the team this season. He’s a winger but will most likely play left wingback as both of our leftbacks are currently out with covid. Against Debry he had nine key passes, most of them coming from his accurate and whipped in dead balls.
What are your thoughts on Fulham?
I don’t know loads about Fulham but Mitrovic has been a thorn in our side in the last and is really too good to be playing at this level. Similarly, bringing in Harry Wilson is a bit of a coup, even if the terms of the deal sound a bit like an accountancy fiddle. Marco Silva was seen as the next big thing only a few seasons ago, so it’s strange to see him managing in the Championship. It’ll be interesting to see how he responds to the cut and thrust of this league, with so many games to play and physical teams that won’t let you play nice football.
How do you expect the game on Saturday to go?
I’m hoping that this is a good time to play a relegated team as you’ll still be adjusting to this league. Having said that, we’ve key players out with covid and other injured, so are far from full strength. Last season we struggled against defensive teams but often played better against teams. I’m expecting Fulham to come and attack us and we’ll look to be solid at the back and try and hit you on the counter. This strategy would work better if we didn’t have a tendency to misplace passes in dangerous areas.
And, finally, can you give us a score prediction?
I doubt Town will keep a clean sheet but I think we’ll get a lift from playing in front of our fans for the first time in such a long time, so I’ll say 1-1.
MY PREFERRED FULHAM STARTING XI: Gazzaniga; Tete, Ream, Tosin, Bryan; Francois, Onomah; Wilson, Kebano, Carvalho; Mitrovic.
@ffcSeb’s Score Prediction; Huddersfield Town 0-2 Fulham FC
