‘We are well and truly in that relegation fight now’ - Charlton Preview
Brady Frost, Feature Writer
Twitter: @brady0894
Source for image above: Charlton Athletic
With the relegation battle hotting up, Lewis Catt from Charlton Live tells us everything we need to know about The Addicks ahead of the key match. Who will come out on top in this crucial six-pointer?
It’s amazing how much changes in a week. From a disappointing display against Swansea to Emile Smith Rowe’s brilliance against Bristol, Huddersfield Town have the chance to make it two wins in a row as Charlton Athletic visit this weekend.
Games never play out how you’d expect, but with one win in Charlton’s last ten away matches, this is a great opportunity for The Terriers to get some breathing space from the relegation zone. However, The Addicks do have a great attacking threat in the form of Lyle Taylor, who has scored 10+ goals in five consecutive seasons.
The previous encounter between the two sides in December saw 18-year-old Matty Daly scoring a 92nd-minute winner for Huddersfield Town. The victory at The Valley stadium was a satisfying one for fans, especially seeing an academy graduate get the decisive goal.
With the chance to leapfrog Charlton in the table, will Huddersfield be able to put The Addicks to the sword again? And He Takes That Chance spoke to Lewis Catt from Charlton fan radio show Charlton Live, to find out what to expect on Saturday.
Matty Daly celebrating his goal against Charlton back in December. Photo source: HTAFC
How would you rate Charlton’s season so far?
It’s been an eventful first season back in the Championship for Charlton. We started with a bit of a bang and found ourselves unbeaten in our opening six matches (four wins and two draws). We lost key man Lyle Taylor late in August and he was the first injury of many! At one point we were lucky if we could fill a bench most weeks and as our squad numbers fell so did our form.
We went a run of one win in 12 and plummeted towards the wrong end of the table. On face value we are currently overachieving, if you offered any Charlton supporter five points from the drop at this stage of the season I think we would bite your hand off. The initial promise at the start of the season slightly raised expectations but realistically I think we all knew we would be in a relegation battle this term.
What did you think of Huddersfield in their previous encounter with Charlton this season?
I thought it was a poor game, freezing cold November night at The Valley. One of those games where either team had to take their chances and unfortunately for us, Huddersfield did, right at the death as well!
What’s your prediction for the rest of Charlton’s season, do you think you’ll get dragged into the relegation fight?
We are well and truly in that fight now but I believe plenty of teams are! There are sides who were miles ahead of us and yourselves who are now in touching distance. At the time of writing this, I would say everyone from Luton in 24th right up to QPR in 13th are in a relegation battle at the moment.
Lee Bowyer is “proper Charlton” according to Lewis Catt. Photo source: Charlton Athletic
What is the fans’ opinion on Lee Bowyer and his style this season, are the fans happy?
Lee Bowyer is what can only be described as “proper Charlton”. He has had to work under some pretty ridiculous constraints in his time here, he was caretaker manager after Karl Robinson departed in March 2018 and wasn’t given a permanent deal until early September 2018!
Last season he steered us to play-off victory in front of one of the highest attended playoff finals in recent history against Sunderland again without any support from our previous owner. We nearly lost him in the summer after Roland Duchatelet made a ridiculous statement about not agreeing on new terms after promotion. We are incredibly lucky to have a manager who is totally invested in our football club. He makes players better, he got the fans back on side during a difficult period of protest and boycotts, and now under the new ownership of ESI, Charlton fans feel the only way is up.
Charlton have only won one away match in the last ten games, how can Huddersfield take advantage?
Charlton’s away form this season has been poor but that being said we recently picked up a great away win at Nottingham Forest where we completely outplayed a team battling for automatic promotion. The losses have not come through lack of trying! Very rarely do you get a performance from Lee Bowyers Charlton where players do not give 100%. We have only lost a handful of games by a margin greater than one goal which shows we have been competing week in week out, even when 80% of our starting XI were out injured!
How pleased are the fans to see the end of Roland Duchâtelet’s reign?
I always said I would give anything to feel the emotion I felt when we scored that 94th minute winner at Wembley. This was the perfect way to do it. My football club has been anchored down by a disinterested owner for the last five years and finally, that reign had come to an end. It didn’t quite feel real until you started seeing Matt Southall, Jonathan Heller and Tahnoon Nimer attending games. Something Roland managed once in his five year reign!
Lewis Catt thinks goalkeeper Dillon Phillips has been outstanding this season. Photo source: Charlton Athletic
Who has been the standout performer this season?
For me, it has to be Dillon Phillips. He has been absolutely outstanding this season. He has kept us in games, won us games and made some absolutely incredible saves throughout the season.
Dillon has been with us through the academy in seeing him performing so well after a frustrating wait for the number one jersey is really rewarding. He is a great character to have around the club and a real fans favourite. Another mention has to go to Lyle Taylor. A proper number who in recent weeks has really started to return to his best! He is the perfect all-round striker.
What did the fans think of The Addicks’ January transfer business?
I think there was a slight feeling of frustration, but only because we had just been taken over and after years of no investment in the squad, we kind of expected to spend millions straight away! That wasn’t the case but we did strengthen in areas we needed.
We lost Conor Gallagher in a bizarre loan swap by Chelsea while Sam Field, Beram Kayal and Jon Leko were recalled due to injury. We signed Andre Green, Matthew Smith, David Davis and Aiden McGeady to fill these gaps left by our January departures. We also have seen a large return in injured players such as Macauley Bonne and returns to full fitness for the likes of Josh Cullen and Lyle Taylor. Having all three back is like having three new signings in itself.
Which players have performed well but gone under the radar to other clubs in the league?
Two players who I feel haven been outstanding this season and have gone under the radar would be Adam Matthews and Alfie Doughty. Mathews was signed on a free after leaving Sunderland as cover for our RB slot. Has truly made the slot his own. Young Alfie has been phenomenal since being called upon by Lee Bowyer. Alfie started the season out on loan at non-league Bromley, and has now established himself as one of the first names on the team sheet every week.
Striker Lyle Taylor has attracted the attention of a host of Championship clubs. Photo source: Charlton Athletic
Is there anything Huddersfield need to be on the lookout for in this game?
This is a huge game for both teams so I can’t give anything away! All I will say is it is going to be a great battle between two clubs fighting to secure Championship status.
What do you think of Huddersfield so far this season?
If I’m being honest I am shocked that with the squad you have that you are not higher up the table. A bit like Stoke City you have some incredibly talented players but something just isn’t working. One player we know a lot about is Karlan Grant who left Charlton for the Terriers when you were in the Premier League. It will be interesting to see If he remains a Huddersfield Town player beyond the summer.
What’s the fan consensus about this game? Is it seen as a winnable fixture?
I think the sheer magnitude of this game for both sides will make it extremely difficult for both teams. Huddersfield were disappointing at home last time out losing 3-0 to Cardiff while the Addicks performed brilliantly in a 1-0 away win at Nottingham Forest. Our away form for the entire season isn’t great and you have had some good home results of late as well so it’s going to be a great contest!
What’s your score prediction for the game?
Scrappy, nervy, edge of the seat stuff but I think after Saturday’s win at Luton Town and the return of some key players could see us edge this. 1-0 Charlton.
How do you think Huddersfield will get on against Charlton? Let us know in the comments!
