HUDDERSFIELD TOWN MASTERM

HUDDERSFIELD Town have booked a second consecutive season in the Premier League, with David Wagner leading the Terriers once again to the promised land.

The head coach has masterminded Town’s rise from Championship strugglers to Premier League second-seasoners alongside assistants Andrew Hughes and Christoph Buhler, with attentions now turning to the boss’ future following the final-day defeat to Arsenal.

At half time in the Gunners’ match, chairman Dean Hoyle took to the pitch to thank fans for their support this season and admitted he “saw no reason” why Wagner would leave at the end of the campaign.

The boss himself was coy on the matter when told about the owner’s comments after the match, joking to reporters: “He puts himself under pressure!”

Wagner has been linked with a number of jobs throughout the season, such as the vacancies at Leicester City, Chelsea and Borussia Dortmund, but has stayed loyal to the Terriers, much as he did last year after reports emerged linking him with a move back to the Bundesliga and Wolfsburg.

The 46-year-old was similarly reluctant to commit himself to the club after promotion last year, however, and did end up putting pen to paper on a two-year extension in West Yorkshire. Wagner acknowledged that he will sit down with Hoyle once again this year to discuss his situation.

“This is the plan,” he said. “This is what we planned six months ago. This is what we usually have done in the past and this is what we will do in the future as well.”

The boss went on to speak about how the club will move forward in the summer, not only with players, but with developments to both PPG Canalside and the John Smith’s Stadium.

“Like always we will have to discuss a lot of things – not only transfers but improvements to the facilities,” he said. “This football club is anything but ready, anything than a Premier League football club, but this club is ambitious. This club has space to improve and this club likes to improve. “Now it’s time to discuss the next steps – and there are a lot of steps to go for this football club – and this will be what this discussion is all about.” Fans will no doubt be hoping the boss stays on for at least another season. After being pulled from Borussia Dortmund’s second team as a relative unknown in English football, the boss took Town by storm, changing training regimes, the mindset of the club and the style of play.

After his first 30 league matches in English football, Wagner had won 10 – including a 4-1 win over bitter rivals Leeds United at Elland Road – and had guided Town to Championship safety after the Terriers were teetering above the relegation zone.

Another 46 league games later and Town had booked a spot in the Championship play-offs after a remarkable season which had seen the relegation-tipped Terriers beat the likes of Newcastle United and Aston Villa to finish fifth.

Three games later and the West Yorkshire side were in the top flight of English football again after 45 years in the wilderness, beating Sheffield Wednesday and Reading on penalties to claim promotion. Wagner was then touted for ‘bigger’ jobs across Europe, but on June 30 he signed an extension and the signings quickly followed with 13 new faces joining the Town ranks as they geared up for a first crack at Premier League football. A sensational 3-0 victory over Crystal Palace on the opening weekend saw Town top of the table overnight and Town didn’t drop lower than 11th until week 14 of the campaign. An eight-match winless run from December to February meant Town dropped into the bottom three for the only time this season, but Wagner energised his team, who bounced back with back-to-back victories. Wagner went on to inspire his side to draws against champions Manchester City and Chelsea in the final week to clinch survival. Wagner and his players’ achievements this season have once again rewritten the Huddersfield Town history books and it is natural that he will again be linked to a whole host of clubs. But the Town fans will hope he stays at the John Smith’s Stadium, continuing to build Town in his own image and pushing the Terriers to even dizzier heights.