23/24 Squad building - The Left Backs
(Image: HTAFC)
Matt Shaw, Founder.
Twitter: @TTCMatt
Is someone chewing lemons? Yes, that’d be me 12 months ago when Harry Toffolo left for Nottingham Forest. Losing a talisman and fan favourite to the club that beat us in the play-off final, and who’s fans then proceeded to be absolute ****’s about it did leave a particularly bitter taste. I’m over it now of course, but are Huddersfield Town? My honest answer is no. Town relied on Harry Toffolo’s ability to carry the ball and overlap into key areas in the attacking third. Six goals and eight assists from left back or wing back in the 21/22 season was always going to be difficult to replace. In fact, Town decided to change tact and never really attempted to replace him and instead pushed back up man Josh Ruffels forward as well as signing Yuta Nakayama from PEC Zwolle. Nakayama showed flashes of ability but never really got to grips with the physical side of The Championship and with carrying the ball not a primary strength of his he felt a more natural fit on the left side of a back three. Josh Ruffels struggled throughout 21/22 when called upon - a lot of players do when they are in and out of the side, and he didn’t really fare much better in 22/23 until Neil Warnock entered the building in February of this year.
In the right back article, I mentioned that Town suffered from a lack of continuity having used no less than 10 different players in this role throughout the season and left back wasn’t much better. Seven different players tried their hand there: Jaheim Headley, Ben Jackson, Matt Lowton, Yuta Nakayama, Matty Pearson, Josh Ruffels and Ollie Turton with others dropping into the wing back or full back area via in-game changes. The main reason for this being Yuta Nakayama’s season ending injury in November. Losing the Japanese international created an opportunity whereby Ben Jackson stepped up from the academy, but after initially faring quite well, he was frozen out by Mark Fotheringham shortly after Jackson was linked with a move to Rangers. The situation improved once Jaheim Headley came back from his loan at Harrogate to challenge Ruffels.
The systems of Carlos Corberan Neil Warnock
On the old scatter diagram here, Town actually have quite a nice spread of exprience, peak players and youth prospects. The question is, are any of them good enough to play the bulk of 46 games? Let’s take a look!
OUTS
Josh Ruffels - Released.
Ajay Weston - Released.
INS
Josh Ruffels - Free. :-D
Ok let’s have a look at our options.
Yuta Nakayama
Age: 26
Contract: Expiring 2024.
Verdict: Monitor and possible contract offer.
The questions are whether has Yuta Nakayama recovered from his major Achilles injury and more importantly the ‘Yut shaming incident’ where Mark Fotheringham pinned the Rotherham defeat squarely on his shoulders for not being “Yer Matty Pearson’s". The Scaffolding Scot wasn’t right very often but he had a somewhat obtuse point. Nakayama was a difficult player to judge last season. He could look classy, good in possession and showed his ability to read the game well but struggled on the odd occasion with the physical nature of The Championship. However, in defence of our “Japanese left sided centre back” Nakayama was only able to make 14 league appearances before injury so didn’t really have the time to acclimatise to this level fully.
What is noticeable in the pre-season photo’s/videos is that Nakayama is more muscular, and he could be ready to step straight back into the Town side providing he is fully recovered from his Achilles injury. Nakayama offers Town versatility in that he can play left sided centre back, left back and central midfield. Where he plays this season will most likely be left back in a 4 or left sided centre back in a back 3. Should Nakayama work his way back in and impress, then Town’s new sporting director Mark Cartwright will need to move sharply to tie Nakayama down as he comes into his prime years.
Josh Ruffels
Age: 29
Contract: Expiring 2025
Verdict: Solid back-up.
So I'm back up in the game, Running things to keep my swing, Letting all the people know, That I'm back to run the show…. RETURN OF THE RUFF, IT IS, RETURN OF THE RUFF, BACK ONCE AGAIN! RETURN OF THE RUFF, THANK F@*# THAT HE’S NOT FLO.
The Ruffels situation looks a little odd on the face of things. Town devised a retained list with the help of Neil Warnock which saw Josh Ruffels released without Town taking up the 1-year option on his contract. 6 weeks later, Josh Ruffels signs a new 2-year deal. Was it a case of Town looking elsewhere first and deciding to stick with what they knew best, or was the situation devoid of any overthinking on the part of us Town fans and the renewal likely complicated by the takeover and Warnock’s return, therefore it was slightly delayed? Most likely.
Ruffels has been a late bloomer all of his career. He started as a midfielder, moved to left back but only really started to look the part in his mid-20’s. His first season at Town was a difficult one. Dislodging Harry Toffolo was no mean feat and when Ruffels was given an opportunity he invariably struggled. These struggles continued when he was given the chance to replace Toffolo permanently last August and it was only under Neil Warnock in the last 10 games of the season we saw Ruffels realise his potential at this level. If we get the Ruffels from the end of last season for the next 2 years, it’s a smart, savvy signing. If Ruffels reverts to prior form, then we have other options and plenty of competition in this area as well as Ruffels as back-up.
Ben Jackson
Age: 22
Contract: Expiring 2024 (1 year option)
Verdict: Versatile back-up.
Who needs Toffolo, when we’ve got Jackooo was the song that absolutely nobody, but I sung last season. Ben Jackson had threatened to break into the first team picture since Carlos Corberan (Lee Morris has stopped reading again) took a shine to him in the pre-season of 2020. Jackson was always impressive in the B team and performed well whilst out on loan at Stockport and Bolton. Town’s trouble with injury and the form of other players provided an opportunity for Jackson and it’s one that he took reasonably well. Jackson made his first start of the season away at Luton and was generously given a goal and his performances at wing back drew praise. In December, Jackson was linked with a move to Rangers and then mysteriously found himself out of the side around the January window without much explanation (that I could find). Jackson reappeared in March contributing an assist in the huge win at Millwall and showing up well the week after in a 4-2 win against Middlesbrough.
Jaheim Headley
Age: 21
Contract: Expiring 2024 (1 year option)
Verdict: Push to be more complete & new contract.
Ah, Jaheim. Probably the feel-good player story of last season. During the 21/22 season, Headley went out on loan to Yeovil Town who decided to not give Headley a single league minute. An outsider at this point could be forgiven for thinking that perhaps the writing was on the wall, and that Headley may find himself moved on from Huddersfield Town. After all, if he can’t get a kick for Yeovil 3 tiers below us, why would he excel at Huddersfield? Well, the next season excel is exactly what he did. Headley worked hard over the summer and secured a loan move to Harrogate where he played twenty-five times to much acclaim from the regulars at Wetherby Road. Town, struggling down the left-side themselves recalled Headley in January and he swapped Betty’s Tea Rooms for Merry England. Headley’s second start in blue and white stripes was a game to remember as he set up Joseph Hungbo for the first and then scored the winner to put Birmingham to the sword. An injury slowed the progress of the Londoner, but he returned to play the last five games of the season and finish it impressively.
I’ve given the verdict of “push to be more complete.” I’m excited by the potential of Jaheim Headley and if the coaching staff can work with him on the defensive side of his game, Town could potentially have a hell of a player on their hands if he could add defensive solidity to his ability to run riot from deep. Also, give him a new long-term contract Mr Cartwright.
Luke Daley
Age: 20
Contract: Expiring 2026
Verdict: Loan
Luke Daley has been highly rated since he signed for the club and with a new 3-year contract in his back pocket it appears that the club very much see him as one with a bright future. Daley played ten times for Gateshead last season, and I would imagine that the aim this year is to get him double the game time in League 2.
Shane Maroodza
Age: 19
Contract: Expiring 2024
Verdict: Loan
Lurking in the shadows of the other left backs is Shane Maroodza. The 19-year-old is quietly plotting his own course towards the first team having spent time on loan at Bradford Park Avenue last season. Town will more than likely keep him ticking over with a similar loan this year to the National League.
Left Back’s Verdict
Left back is Town’s most competitive position in the entire squad. On one hand I don’t think there is Neil Warnock’s idea of his picture-perfect left back in the squad, but Town have so many options and so many varying levels of versatility to boot to select on a game-by-game basis. Yuta Nakayama is a left back who can defend the box and far post, is quite good aerially and can pass out from the back. Where he is weak in terms of carrying the ball and bombing down the flank you have the irrepressible Jaheim Headley who specialises in this although his delivery isn’t yet a strong point. That doesn’t matter though as we also have a left footed set piece specialist with a decent engine in Ben Jackson and if you don’t want a specialist and rather a solid jack of all left back traded then Josh Ruffels can do most things well without particularly excelling, bar scoring absolute thunderbastards! If any of these lads then think about resting on their laurels, they should think again with Luke Daley and Shane Maroodza desperate to push onwards.
It’ll be no surprise to you that I’m going to say that Town don’t require any signings in this area. In fact, this area could become key over the course of the season due to the new NINE subs rule. Nine seems ridiculous, doesn’t it? With Town possessing game changing fullbacks on the left, don’t be surprised to see the likes of Headley and Jackson regularly being used to help both chase and close out games.
