Are you familiar with the concept of “El Sackico?” It’s a term with which Football Manager players may be familiar…and given how the recent launch of that game has gone, it may well soon apply to the executives. The earliest real-world example I can find comes from Julen Lopetegui’s West Ham United facing Gary O’Neil’s Wolverhampton Wanderers in 2024, but I’m sure the play on words is more than a year old.
Anyway, it could well be the case that we’re looking at the latest episode of the El Sackico saga this weekend. Because it’s fair to say that Plymouth Argyle, or perhaps more accurately much of Plymouth Argyle’s fanbase, have lost faith in head coach Tom Cleverley. The 2-0 FA Cup loss to Wycombe Wanderers was the latest in a long line of dire displays, and at any other club I suspect he’d be relieved of his duties. Indeed, another such performance at Huddersfield Town may paint a defiant board into a corner.
However, Huddersfield aren’t exactly enamoured by Lee Grant since his arrival as head coach over the summer. Argyle may have lost four on the spin but, if you discount the pizza cup (and I do), Huddersfield are on exactly the same run. They may sit ninth in the league, but on a points basis they’re exactly the same distance away from the play-offs as the relegation zone. In short, not good enough for a team with the Terriers’ budget.
It’s a game both will be desperate to win, but perhaps one neither set of fans fully believes they will. Let’s take a closer look at Argyle’s opponents.
Style of play
Cleverley has been rotating his team and formation, appearing to be desperately floundering as he hunts for a formula to curtail Argyle’s dismal form. At Huddersfield, however, things have been significantly more rigid. For better or worse, Grant has stuck with his preferred 4-2-3-1 formation exclusively throughout the campaign thus far.
The defence in particular has seemed particularly settled. Grant has admirably/stubbornly, depending on your viewpoint, stuck with largely the same personnel despite the recent downturn in fortunes. The only real exception is in goal. Crystal Palace loanee Owen Goodman started the season between the posts, but a red card against Barnsley paved the way for the experienced Lee Nicholls to step in. He’s kept his place ever since.
Aside from that, I’d be surprised to see any changes to at least three of the back four. On the left, Ruben Roosken has done well to keep summer arrival Sean Roughan out of the side, whilst Joe Low and Josh Feeney have started the last five league games together at centre back. The only question mark is on the right. Lynden Gooch is likely to play somewhere, and it could well be there, but if he’s further upfield expect Lasse Sorensen to fill the void.
The midfield double pivot has a crucial role in Huddersfield’s style, particularly in possession. Unlike many of Argyle’s opponents in recent weeks, Huddersfield don’t like to go long. They’ve completed an average of 20.9 long passes per game this season, ranking 20th across League One. In terms of passes in general, however, they’ve made an average of 321.8 per game, a figure beaten by only five other teams in the league.
Thus, expect to see Huddersfield building through the thirds, with both deep midfielders having the responsibility of working the ball from defence to attack. Ryan Ledson has started every game and captained the side since his arrival from Preston North End over the summer, and he’ll surely be one of the two. Ben Wiles feels a reasonable bet to play alongside him, but he could be pushed into the number 10 role. If he is, expect Ledson to be partnered by either Gooch or David Kasumu.
Wiles’ ascent to the number 10 role may be enforced by the key suspension of Alfie May. Yes, he’s regularly a striker, but he’s occasionally featured just behind the man up top this season in a shadow striker role. His dismissal against Wycombe Wanderers last month makes him an absentee, and could well see Wiles pushed forward to fill that gap. If not, Chelsea loanee Leo Castledine could be in line for a starting berth.
May will be a miss in the attacking areas, but Huddersfield are hardly short of options up front. Both Joe Taylor and Dion Charles feel like good options at this level, whilst Bojan Radulovic started last week’s FA Cup defeat by Bolton Wanderers. Out wide there’s Marcus Harness, who always seems to play well against the Pilgrims, whilst Gooch could find his role in a more attacking area. Mickel Miller, to my surprise, also seems fit, and could be keen to impress in this fixture for obvious reasons.
If I were in Grant’s shoes, I’d be looking at the goals Argyle have conceded and changing my approach. Given it often only takes one long ball through the middle to tear the Greens apart, I’d be moving away from my reluctance to go long for this specific game. I’m interested to see if he does; if Grant proves as stubborn as he’s been for the last few weeks, his style could suit Saturday’s visitors.
Strengths
Earlier, I made a point about Grant being particularly inflexible in his starting lineup. That could easily be seen as criticism, and I’m certainly aware of some Huddersfield supporters bemoaning Grant’s lack of a plan B (compared, I suppose, to Cleverley’s lack of a plan A). However, in certain cases, I can appreciate why the Huddersfield head coach has stuck with certain formulas, which do help several strengths in his squad come to the fore.
The defence is a good example. Given Huddersfield have been losing on a regular basis lately, I was surprised to hear that some of their defensive statistics are pretty positive. For instance, they’ve kept six clean sheets across their 14 league games this season, a figure no other side in the division can beat. It’s understandable that Grant would want to keep his defensive unit as tight and settled as possible.
That particular quirk paints the weekend’s game in an interesting light. Huddersfield’s defensive record is average at best, despite keeping their league-high number of clean sheets. It suggests that, when they do concede, they’re likely to ship a hatful. However, against teams who rarely score, Grant’s current system could be effective. Argyle, it won’t have escaped your attention, have rarely scored lately, and the Terriers will surely trust themselves to keep Cleverley’s men out again this weekend.
To add another spanner in the works for Argyle, I see a few parallels between Huddersfield and Wycombe, who comfortably outplayed the Greens last weekend. Between both boxes, Huddersfield aren’t performing to the same level as Michael Duff’s side (Wycombe rank 4th in the expected points table, Huddersfield 12th), but they do tend to have the better of the play and compete on their own terms, particularly at home.
Allow me to present an example: Huddersfield have won 95 corners this season, more that any League One side. Whilst that hasn’t always translated to goals in the way they’d like, it at least demonstrates that they often play on the front foot. To win set piece opportunities, you first need to get into attacking areas, and Huddersfield are clearly doing that with regularity.
I wouldn’t necessarily say Argyle are specifically weak from set pieces. Frankly, this team often seems as if it can concede from just about any situation. However, it wouldn’t surprise me if Huddersfield broke through from a corner or free kick situation this weekend.
In general, I think it must be accepted that Huddersfield have the stronger squad of the two sides. Indeed, they had the transfer window many at Argyle were hoping for this summer, signing a group of players who give them a genuine chance of competing at the top end of League One.
Running through their squad, it’s impossible to escape the notion that Argyle have missed out on some top talents. Both Ledson and Low have been linked with the Pilgrims in the past, but eventually signed for Huddersfield. Roughan doesn’t even get into the team at the moment, but he was wanted by practically the entire league after departing Lincoln City. May is similar, and his absence feels significant this weekend.
Huddersfield are undoubtedly underachieving. However, simply by comparing the players both they and Argyle have available, it’s clear they’ll start the game as comfortable favourites.
Weaknesses
As a relatively young coach, Grant is part of the modern school of managerial thinking. Perhaps not so modern that he’s regressed back to the 1980s, as we’ve seen at the top of the Premier League this season, but modern in the sense that he values possession, and likes his teams to play out from the back and through the thirds.
Given the value Grant places on possession, you’d be forgiven for thinking his side prioritises winning back the ball as soon as it’s lost. In reality, however, that doesn’t appear to be the case. Or indeed, if that is the goal out of possession, it’s not an instruction Huddersfield carry out well at all. Statistically they are one of the worst pressing teams in the league. The Terriers win the ball in the final third an average of 2.3 times per game, the second-worst figure in the league.
As luck would have it, Argyle are statistically the worst pressing team in the league, winning possession in the final third an average of 2.2 times per game. And that, I’d suggest, is a clear indication of how Saturday’s game will progress. Both teams will be given time to build their attacks, and both defences should be mightily disappointed if they’re forced into a critical error.
Whilst we’re on the topic of the defences, I think it’s worth touching on Huddersfield’s defensive line again. As I’ve mentioned there are several talented players in the Terriers’ ranks, and on their day they can be a formidable unit. Against Argyle, I’m sure they’ll trust it to be “their day.” But why, if all of that is true, have they shipped a disappointing number of goals in a losing run?
From what I can see, there isn’t enough front-foot defending taking place to break up opposition attacks. A few examples from their stats show they rank 16th across the league for tackles per game (14.9), 21st for interceptions per game (6.2) and 22nd for clearances per game (27.8). Their defending is reactive rather than proactive, and it gives their opponents time to build.
That’s a tactical choice, and it does have its benefits too. For example, sitting off avoids the risk of overcommitting – it’s what Argyle did well under Steven Schumacher during the first half of 2023/24. It’s also completely fine as a strategy if you’re facing a side who struggle to create chances, and Argyle certainly fall into that category right now. Why overexert yourself defensively when you know your opponents will have trouble breaking you down?
Nonetheless, it perhaps acts as an explanation as to why Huddersfield tend to struggle against the better sides. At its best, their defence can be impenetrable. At its worst, it can be static and easy to play around. Argyle will get their chances to open Huddersfield up this weekend; they must take them.
I also suspect there are a couple of mentality issues at the back for Huddersfield, almost as though they don’t trust themselves to keep the door shut when they’ve already conceded once. A recent game with Bolton demonstrates that perfectly; Grant’s side were leading in the 93rd minute, conceded an equaliser deep into stoppage time, and somehow contrived to lose with Bolton’s next attack. When put under pressure, Huddersfield fell apart.
Given they’ve lost their last four in all serious competitions, those mental scars could run deep. If Argyle can somehow get themselves into the lead on Saturday, they’ll give themselves every chance of a positive result.
Prediction
In this week’s episode of the Green and White Podcast, I predicted Argyle would lose 3-1. Having looked at Huddersfield more closely, I suspect it’s more likely they’ll keep a clean sheet, mainly due to the toothlessness of Argyle’s attack. So, I’ll go with a defeat by the same margin: 2-0 Huddersfield.
Would that be enough to see the back of Cleverley? Well, it’s worth noting that neither Lopetegui or O’Neil actually left directly after the aforementioned Premier League El Sackico. This saga could yet have a way to run.