Huddersfield Town went to Burnley and played out a fairly tedious 0-0 draw. Neither side generated the moment of quality that was needed to secure a win.
A point away at Burnley isn’t a bad result for Town and there were some good performances. But it’s hard not to wonder if we could have won it with just a bit more quality in the final third.
Lössl – 7 out of 10
Had very little to do, but his distribution was once again superb. Short, mid, and long-range passes all found their man. His quick thinking and accurate kicks started a couple of breaks for Town.
Löwe – 6 out of 10
Another below par performance from the German. He seems to have lost some confidence, getting basic things wrong and being hesitant with his positioning.
Schindler – 9 out of 10 (Man of the Match)
Yet again, a commanding performance. He read the game so well and broke up Burnley’s attacks with well-timed interventions. Also swept up on the few occasions Wood looked like he’d got past Zanka.
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Zanka – 8 out of 10
Probably his best game yet. Chris Wood was a tough opponent but Zanka dealt with him admirably. His passing was also much improved, with fewer sloppy balls out from the back.
Smith 7 out of 10
Another good game for Smith, he covered a lot of ground and supported Kachunga well going forward. He’s still not quite at his best, but there are signs of last season’s form returning.
Mooy – 7 out of 10
Not a bad game but he didn’t have his usual level of influence. Perhaps there wasn’t enough space for him in the middle of the park, but he still had his moments. Looked best late on when he got forward more and supported the attackers.
Hogg – 8 out of 10
Great to see Hogg back in the middle of the park. This was an ideal game for him, and he won a lot of battles and protected the defence admirably. We look a lot less likely to concede with Hogg mopping up in front of the back four.
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Ince – 7 out of 10
Desperately in need of a goal. He’s doing the right things, but it’s not quite working out for him. His tracking back was excellent and he bailed Löwe out a couple of times by making covering tackles. Going forward he wasn’t at his best, but still looked dangerous at times.
Sabiri – 6 out of 10
Didn’t manage to influence the game as much as I’d have liked. He was busy and tried to get on the ball but didn’t hurt Burnley. There was a lack of delicacy in his passing at times and he didn’t link up well with Depoitre. I’m sure he’ll have better games for Town in the future.
Kachunga – 8 out of 10
Our biggest attacking threat for much of the game. He ran at the Burnley defence and caused them problems. His best moment came when he cut through Burnley’s back line and played a clever ball into van La Parra, which led to the diving incident.
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Depoitre – 6 out of 10
This is probably a slightly harsh rating, as he didn’t do much wrong but he wasn’t involved in the game enough. There wasn’t a lot of quality service to him, which isn’t really his fault. He didn’t manage to bully the Burnley defence in the same way he pushed around Leicester last weekend. He looked tired at the end, and possibly only played 90 minutes because injuries mean we’ve got few options up front.
van La Parra – 5 out of 10
He came off the bench and looked lively. He brought the ball forward, took on the Burnley defence, and was a real threat. This positive contribution was spoilt by going down in the area and appealing for a penalty.
At the time of writing I’ve not seen a replay, but in real time it looked like a pretty pathetic dive. It seemed like he went down more because of his poor touch spoiling the chance than from any genuine contact from the defender. I don’t like seeing Town players doing this kind of thing, I hope he learns his lesson.
Of course, I might be wrong and VLP could have been harshly punished. I’ll wholeheartedly apologise if the replay proves me wrong and it wasn’t a dive.
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Billing – N/A
Didn’t do much either good or bad in the ten minutes he had on the pitch. Not really enough time for him make a mark on the game.
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Hadergjonaj – N/A
Played as a right-sided forward, rather than his usual right-back position. Got on the ball a few times but not to any effect.
Van La Parra did dive in the box in my judgement and good on Town to act swiftly and fine him. Diving is not an acceptable way to win a penalty, but had it been given and converted I’m sure we will have taken it. I don’t see what Wagner sees in him because he tries to be like Messi with his footwork and his shooting and crossing abilities are painful. We have to make do with our options until January and I think then he will be offloaded as he doesn’t tick the boxes. 2 goals in his Town career speaks for itself. If he was better he would have more goals. His work ethic is there but not the talent.
The ongoing stat of not registering goals is a growing concern. We’re solid at the back (until next week possibly when we face Kane etc.), but you can’t create and not score in every game that passes by. Missed chances cost you points and, while all points add up, squandering opportunities could be something you look back at with regret if and when you lose in future fixtures. The next month is more difficult than you can imagine and you can’t predict results, but it could be two points dropped.
It’s alright stopping goals but they need to get them too. It’s worrying.
Wagner might be pleased with point as am l but offensively we are poor. We must up our game 5 goals in 6 games is not good enough forwards are poor.