Month: September 2019

Huddersfield Town chairman Phil Hodgkinson has stressed that the club don’t have to part ways with midfielder Aaron Mooy this summer unless a club meet their asking price. The Australia international was influential towards the Terriers remaining in the Premier League during the 2017/18 campaign but he could not repeat the feat last term due to injuries and loss of form.

Still, he is regarded as one of the most important players in the club’s ranks and new chairman Hodgkinson has indicated that no player would be sold without their asking price being met, he told The Huddersfield Examiner: “Not one player is going to leave this football club unless it’s for the right price. Football is football and we are a trading club, we will always be a trading club – even if we are in the Premier League we will be a trading club, that’s what we are. The reality is, if the right offer comes in for a player that meets or exceeds our valuation and it’s the right move for the player, and they improve themselves, we won’t stand in their way.”

Huddersfield Town chairman Phil Hodgkinson has stressed that the club don’t have to part ways with midfielder Aaron Mooy this summer unless a club meet their asking price. The Australia international was influential towards the Terriers remaining in the Premier League during the 2017/18 campaign but he could not repeat the feat last term due to injuries and loss of form.

Still, he is regarded as one of the most important players in the club’s ranks and new chairman Hodgkinson has indicated that no player would be sold without their asking price being met, he told The Huddersfield Examiner: “Not one player is going to leave this football club unless it’s for the right price. Football is football and we are a trading club, we will always be a trading club – even if we are in the Premier League we will be a trading club, that’s what we are. The reality is, if the right offer comes in for a player that meets or exceeds our valuation and it’s the right move for the player, and they improve themselves, we won’t stand in their way.”

The Terriers were lauded for beating the drop on their return to the Premier League during the 2017/18 season but they managed to scrape through a relegation battle on the penultimate game of the campaign. However, they could not repeat the performance last term and they ended up with the third lower points tally (16) since the beginning of the Premier League era.

Despite this, they have managed to keep hold of most of the players from the first-team squad and have also sought to strengthen the team with Isaac Mbenza and Herbert Bockhorn among the high-profile players joining the club. Huddersfield start their Championship campaign with a home game against Derby County on Monday night.

Australia international Matty Ryan has acknowledged that he is pleased with the beginning to the season with Brighton & Hove Albion. The Seagulls ended the previous campaign in a disappointing fashion with just two wins following the turn of the year and they were still able to hold on to the 17th spot by a margin of two points ahead of Cardiff City.

As such, manager Chris Hughton was asked from the helm to be replaced with Graham Potter and the latter has made a sensational start to the season as Brighton secured a comfortable 3-0 victory on the road to Watford. Speaking after that game, Ryan admitted that he had a fine afternoon whereby the attempts on goal were minimal from the hosts.

Australia international Matty Ryan has acknowledged that he is pleased with the beginning to the season with Brighton & Hove Albion. The Seagulls ended the previous campaign in a disappointing fashion with just two wins following the turn of the year and they were still able to hold on to the 17th spot by a margin of two points ahead of Cardiff City.

As such, manager Chris Hughton was asked from the helm to be replaced with Graham Potter and the latter has made a sensational start to the season as Brighton secured a comfortable 3-0 victory on the road to Watford. Speaking after that game, Ryan admitted that he had a fine afternoon whereby the attempts on goal were minimal from the hosts.

He said: “It’s always great as a goalkeeper when you don’t have much to do. There’s that old cliche of being a goalkeeper and it’s all right when the games end up being a clean sheet but, for that one moment that comes along, and even outside of that, there are still decisive moments where you need to be clear with your decisions and be that composed figure back there. I was just thankful that I could contribute on the pitch to what we tried to show to the fans.”

Over the past two seasons, Brighton have tended to play with a defensive mindset on the road and that nearly cost them relegation last term where they managed just 13 points from 19 away trips. That statistic could change this season with Potter adapting a much better approach where the players have been offered the freedom to go for the victory rather than playing for the stalemate.

Brighton’s second game of the league season comes against West Ham United at the Falmer Stadium. The Seagulls have an excellent record against the Hammers since their top-flight comeback two years ago. They have registered three wins and one draw from the past four meetings.