Fringe players who can send out a message to Corberan
HUDDERSFIELD Town have just seven games left in their season unless they do well enough in those matches to earn themselves an eight, nine and hopefully 10th come May. And head coach Carlos Corberan will want to see all of his players at their best for this final push over the line.
The Terriers sit in fourth place in the Championship but after just one point from their last three games, that position is under threat.
Fortunately, Corberan now has two weeks on the training pitch to get rest and renewed vigour into tired legs – and to have a real proper look at some of the fringe players who have not been involved lately.
There is a lot of talent among them if the Town boss can get those players involved – here are a few who need to show the gaffer they can do a job for him, starting against Hull City on Friday, April 1...
■■CAREL EITING
WE can’t imagine Carel Eiting quite had this in mind when he had his contract with Genk terminated on transfer deadline day so he could return to the John Smith’s Stadium. The rapturous reception which greeted his return has been followed up by limited opportunities to show what he can do, with the midfielder still yet to make a league start.
Perhaps the emergence of Jon Russell just came at an inconvenient moment for the Dutchman, but so far we’ve only seen him make four substitute appearances in the Championship plus a pair of FA Cup starts.
A cut on his foot was accountable for Eiting missing the game against Millwall, but otherwise he has been fit, he’s simply not made it off the bench since playing Nottingham Forest.
Even more perplexing is that’s despite Corberan declaring himself to be pleased with what he had seen from the Dutchman both in that game and against Peterborough.
With Town needing to be more patient in possession, might it be time for Eiting to get a chance?
■■JOSH KOROMA
IT would be fair to say Josh Koroma has not hit anything like the heights of last season’s top-scoring heroics and few have complained he has taken something of a back seat over the past few weeks.
Corberan gave the player an extended run in the side in January and early February, but evidently came away unimpressed with what he saw from the winger despite his goals against Burnley and Stoke City and his assist in the FA cup against Barnsley.
Koroma has not started a game since putting in a poor showing in the goalless draw against Sheffield United over a month ago, and clearly doesn’t offer as much defensively as some of the more versatile options for his position such as Danel Sinani and Duane Holmes, but he has scored three goals in his last 494 minutes of action, which is not bad going at all.
Holmes’ own purple patch in front of goal came to an end against Fulham, while Sinani has been largely unconvincing for a while now, Peterborough heroics aside.
Koroma wouldn’t work wide in a 4-4-2, so he’d need to play in a front three... and is it worth looking again at what he could do in a front two? Everyone else has got a go.
Everyone, that is, except...
■■JORDAN RHODES
WE’VE praised Jordan Rhodes for his work as a substitute on several occasions this season, with his turn late on against Cardiff especially eye-catching. But the nicest man in football has started just twice in the league this season, and one of them was all the way back on the opening day away to Derby County.
Rhodes clearly doesn’t offer as much in his all-round game as Danny Ward, and we wouldn’t for a moment suggest he replace Town’s top scorer. But for him not to get a start in the FA Cup despite Corberan opting to rest Ward must have stung a bit.
As with Koroma, it’s also curious the Terriers boss has tried several other players in a front two pairing
with Ward over the past few weeks but he and Rhodes have only shared the pitch for 147 league minutes this season.
It’s now on Rhodes to show he is sharp enough both in front of goal and in the press that it is worth compromising Ward’s game slightly to get the two of them playing together.
■■PIPA AND JOSH RUFFELS
WE’LL put the full-backs in together, because Corberan has tended to as well. We’ve only seen each one start without the other once this season, with the duo lining up together against Burnley, Barnsley and Forest in the FA Cup, as well against Sheffield United in the league.
Unfortunately for both, their last outing didn’t go so well. They were poor in the 2-1 defeat at the City Ground, with Josh Ruffels at fault in playing Forest onside for their winning goal and Pipa meandering all over the pitch seemingly playing whatever position he pleased from one moment to the next.
We have generally liked what we’ve seen from Ruffels otherwise, though, and he could be a useful alternative to Harry Toffolo, particularly with three games to play in eight days over Easter.
We also know from last season what an exciting and dangerous player Pipa can be when he’s at his best. Persistent injuries may have prevented the Spaniard from hitting his own high standards this campaign, but if he can prove to Corberan those are in the past, he could become a key player once again.