Town’s winter transfer plans up in the air!
THE Terriers can use the next eight games to assess what they need when the January transfer window opens.
Huddersfield Town did excellent business in the summer to significantly strengthen the options available to head coach Carlos Corberan.
Though there is a debate to be had over whether the head coach is using that greater depth to its maximum, the starting line-up he has picked for five of Town’s last six games has featured five of those summer signings, while January additions Sorba Thomas and Duane Holmes have also emerged as key players.
But even aside from the question of what Town need as the midseason transfer window nears there are a few question marks that will inform their approach to their transfer dealings. Questions like…
THE big one, as ever. The majority of deals done both at the John Smith’s Stadium and across the Championship as a whole since the pandemic began has been very much towards free transfers, so it would be a bit of a surprise if Town were to pay any kind of substantial transfer fee in the window ahead.
Part-owner Dean Hoyle has resumed his financial commitments to the club while chairman Phil Hodgkinson tackles his own businesses going into administration, meaning Town’s ability to compete in the transfer market should not diminish.
There was an intriguing update in the notes from the latest All Together Town meeting between fan groups and club representatives indicating that ‘depending on where we are in the table in January would also potentially dictate the nature of any dealings.’ That could go either way: might a solid mid-table position mean they are more willing to countenance bringing forward planned summer departures to save money for July, as they did with Ben Hamer last January, while focusing on finding more long-term prospects such as Sorba Thomas?
Alternatively, might a continuation of Town’s sniffing around the play-off places – or a severe dropoff in results leading to relegation worries in this compact league table – mean they are more willing to go harder in investing in players?
It’s a delicate balance, as the club have found over the last couple of January windows.
THE midfielder signed a new contract after Leeds United’s summer pursuit came to nothing, which means there is no risk of Town’s star player going on a free in the summer.
That significantly protects his valuation going into the January window, but there will still be a price on his head that Town would find impossible to turn down.
Leeds were O’Brien’s most serious would-be suitors in the summer, but we know that other Premier League clubs had at the very least asked to be kept informed of his situation.
One of those is rumoured to have been Newcastle United, who we hear may have a few quid to spend now…
O’Brien’s new contract means there is no risk of Town’s star player going on a free in the summer
NEXT on Town’s to-do list after tying up O’Brien’s new deal was opening talks with Josh Koroma and Harry Toffolo over contract extensions, with both players set to be out of contract in the summer – though the club can trigger an extra year on both their current deals if they so wish.
It’s been more than two months since Hodgkinson revealed those talks would be opened, though, and so far new deals have not been announced.