Simpson could be back to play against Town
FORMER Huddersfield Town right-back Danny Simpson is on the lookout for a new club and may find himself turning out for a Championship rival next season.
Reports suggest the defender could end up at Stoke City following his release from the Terriers in June.
Simpson arrived at the John Smith’s Stadium as a free agent in September after initial first choice Florent Hadergjonaj was exposed by other teams on too many occasions.
Simpson had an immediate impact on Town’s defensive fortunes and impressed fans and neutrals alike with his assured initial performances.
The 33-year-old struggled on and off with injuries later in the season, however, and when the season was extended into July, the club decided not to offer him an extended deal to keep him at the club through to the end of the campaign.
The player was openly critical of what he called ‘unprofessional’ conduct by the club, contending that Town had reached a verbal agreement with him that they then reneged on shortly before the season resumed with a 2-0 home defeat to Wigan Athletic.
The Terriers’ head of football operations Leigh Bromby later explained the agreement the club had reached with Simpson entailed certain payments to the veteran right-back that none of Town’s other out-of-contract players would have received.
Bromby said in late June: “We didn’t feel that was the right thing within the current situation.
“We’ve got staff here who are furloughed, so then to go and pay a player extra money that the other players were not receiving was not the right thing to do.
“So regardless of the timing which I take on board, that was not perfect, nobody here is saying we got that right - what I would say is it wouldn’t have been fair.
“We made a moral decision towards our values that we thought was the right decision.”
Town subsequently gave academy prospect Demeaco Duhaney a run at right-back before injury meant he was replaced for the final few games of the season by Chelsea loanee Trevoh Chalobah.
Bromby has since indicated that right-back is one position Town may need to look at in the transfer market this summer.
Hadergjonaj and Duhaney are the only remaining senior rightbacks at the club, but head coach Carlos Corberan has revealed that the Kosovo international is on the verge of a move away from the club. Greek side Olympiakos rumoured to be interested in securing a deal.