Vibrant Town hold firm to put pressure on rivals
A FORTNIGHT after being outsmarted by the grizzled veterans of Cardiff City, Huddersfield Town’s bright young things put on an exhibition against Bristol City.
The vibrant 2-1 victory given to them by Chris Willock’s first goal for the club and Karlan Grant’s 14th already this season lifts the Terriers above Middlesbrough and Stoke City in the Championship relegation battle, and puts pressure on them and Reading to respond tonight.
But they put themselves under unnecessary pressure by not putting the game to bed when they had the chance.
Emile Smith Rowe dazzled in the hole but sitting behind him, the home-grown Lewis O’Brien was every bit as impressive.
Seeing which way the game was going, when Jonathan Hogg finally took the hint after being clattered for a third time, Danny Cowley resisted the temptation to throw on Andy King, and opted for on-loan Chelsea youngster Trevoh Chalobah instead. It was that type of night.
For all their pretty football, though, the Terriers lacked bite where it mattered most, and could have gone in at 1-1 had Famara Diedhiou not struck the post during the eighth minute of ‘Hogg Time’ added onto the first half. The lesson went unheeded.
It took just four minutes for Smith Rowe to flash the first of Town’s 10 shots in the opening period wide of goal. Well wide, in fact.
Smith Rowe is on loan from Arsenal and Huddersfield fans would be well advised to catch him while they can because the way he is playing, and the way Mikel Arteta is trying to reshape the Gunners, he could well be reunited with Eddie Nketiah and co next season.
He and O’Brien sliced the Robins open with their passing, but the final ball was too often missing or not put away.
The Robins tried to rough Huddersfield up, Markus Henriksen
and Jack Hunt going into the book in the first 20 minutes and the Town bench angry it was the only yellow card waved the latter’s way. Manager Lee Johnson took advantage of Hogg’s second lengthy spell of treatment to call all 11 players over for a chat having booted fresh air, then the ball, in frustration on the touchline only a minute earlier.
The hosts, who Cowley said had been “bullied” by Cardiff, were not intimidated last night. They can do it on a cold, wet Tuesday in Huddersfield.
A goal was coming. Fraizer Campbell went airborne trying to volley Harry Toffolo’s 31st-minute cross after O’Brien played the full-back in, but could not. Seconds later, his poacher instincts got the better of him, tapping in Grant’s goalbound shot from an offside position.
It was left to another youngster, Willock, to score his first Huddersfield goal, taking Smith Rowe’s pass and cutting in on his left to unleash a beautiful shot.
For all that, Diedhiou might have equalised, though Jonas Lossl might argue that had Bristol City’s only shot of the half been inside the post rather than striking it, he had it covered. Regardless, it was a timely warning, as was the centre-forward bundling a header wide a minute after Johnson’s half-time double substitution.
The Cowley brothers were having a long conversation about how to combat Bristol City’s switch from 3-5-2 to a midfield diamond when Smith Rowe found a solution, playing a onetwo with Willock before Nathan Baker unceremoniously clattered his shoulder into the youngster. Although Daniel Bentley dived the right way, he could not keep the penalty out.
Huddersfield let the Robins off the hook. They need more ruthlessness for the days when chances are not as forthcoming.
Campbell did his bit for the old-timers by lifting an exquisite switch to Grant in the 72nd minute. A big deflection allowed
Bentley to save with his legs, and when the forward twisted and turned into a shooting position five minutes later, his shot thudded off target.
O’Brien ought to have capped his night with a goal, but his 77thminute shot was woefully wayward, and his next effort hit the side netting after a one-two with Smith Rowe.
Substitute Steve Mounie blasted well off target after another O’Brien insurgency.
It made for an uncomfortable stoppage time. When Jay Dasilva’s shot was saved, Diedhiou bundled an 89th-minute goal which mattered little, but should serve as a lesson to Cowley’s pupils that the prettiest football don’t mean a thing if you ain’t got that sting.
Huddersfield Town: Lossl; Simpson, Stearman, Schindler, Toffolo; O’Brien, Hogg (Chalobah 32); Willock (Bacuna 70), Smith Rowe, Grant; Campbell (Mounie 73). Unused substitutes:
Coleman, Pritchard, Stankovic, King.
Bristol City: Bentley; Kalas, Benkovic (Eliasson 46), Baker; Hunt, Paterson, Henriksen (Nagy 46), Rowe (Weimann 73), Dasilva; Diedhiou, Wells. Unused substitutes: Williams, Lopes Pereira, Wollacott, Palmer.
R Jones (Cheshire).