Pep’s academy graduate makes his way at Town
HUDDERSFIELD Town fans will be keen to make a note of the former Manchester City player emerging from under the radar at the John Smith’s Stadium.
His name is Demeaco Duhaney and he was on the scoresheet when Town’s Elite Development Squad went down 4-2 to a strong Scunthorpe United side on Tuesday.
A strong full-back, the 20-year-old Duhaney has been progressing well under coaches Mark Hudson and now Dean Whitehead in Leigh Bromby’s Academy set-up this season.
Duhaney is the England Under-20 defender Town signed in the summer as a free agent when he left Manchester City, where he had been working with Pep Guardiola.
Pacy and athletic, he has a Town deal to June 2020 and the club have the option to extend that contract by a further 12 months.
From Fallowfield in Manchester, he joined the Manchester City Academy as a five-year-old and progressed through the ranks before signing a two-year scholarship in the summer of 2015.
He was a regular in the City side that reached the 2017 FA Youth Cup final, while also playing consistently in the UEFA Youth League and in the Premier League 2 for City’s Under-23 side.
More recently, Duhaney joined up with Pep Guardiola’s first-team squad during the pre-season tour of the United States in the summer of 2017, playing the final 18 minutes of a friendly against Spurs in Nashville. His senior competitive debut soon followed as he started all three of City’s games in the Checkatrade Trophy, whilst he was also an unused substitute for a Carabao Cup game at Leicester City and a Champions League game at Shakhtar Donetsk.
Of his move to Town, Duhaney explained to the club’s official website: “I think I’ve become a better defender here.
“The coaches have been helping me and teaching me how to get out quicker to stop crosses coming in; I think it’s brought me on quite a lot.
“I’m becoming more vocal, I’m one of the oldest on my team, so I think I’m trying to become more of a leader on the pitch.
“My main threat has always been going forwards, so I’ve kept going with it and trying to make it even better.
“I’m working more on my left foot and on different types of crosses, but I like to get forward a lot.”
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