Hull City will make the trip across Yorkshire to take on Huddersfield Town on Saturday in a game of major importance in the fight at both ends of the Championship table.
Just 14 points separate the sides in England's second tier, but the visitors only trail the playoff places on goal difference while the hosts have only recently built up a healthy lead over the relegation zone.
Match preview
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Huddersfield Town head into the weekend aiming to continue their improvement under the temporary stewardship of Jon Worthington, having gained crucial ground in the fight for Championship survival in recent weeks.
Worthington took over following Darren Moore's departure in late January with the Yorkshire outfit sat a single place above the relegation zone on 28 points from 29 league outings, but he has inspired an upturn in form thus far, beginning with a relegation six-pointer against 23rd-placed Sheffield Wednesday, as they dished out a 4-0 beating courtesy of Josh Koroma's brace and goals from Matty Pearson and Sorba Thomas.
A tough trip to second-placed Southampton then followed, and the Terriers left empty-handed despite a valiant effort, going 2-0 up through Thomas and David Kasumu and 3-2 up thanks to an Alex Matos goal, only for the hosts to turn the game around late on and triumph in a 5-3 win, with Tom Lees scoring an own goal 10 minutes from time and Sekou Mara and Samuel Edozie going on to find the net.
Seeking to quickly rebound from that setback, they would then welcome Sunderland to the John Smith's Stadium on Wednesday and put three more vital points on the board in a 1-0 triumph, having gone ahead in the first half through Pearson and held their lead throughout.
Thanks to their two recent victories under temporary management, Huddersfield Town have now leapfrogged Millwall and sit 20th with an improved five-point lead over the relegation zone, and they will now bid to increase that cushion and make it back-to-back league wins for the first time since September at the weekend.
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That will certainly be a tough task, though, as the visitors arrive with their sights set on the playoffs on the back of a midweek win of their own.
Under the management of Liam Rosenior, Hull City have enjoyed a pleasing campaign thus far in their bid to earn a top-six spot, as they currently occupy eighth spot with 48 points on the board from their opening 31 games.
Back-to-back defeats at the hands of strugglers Sheffield Wednesday and playoff rivals Norwich City at the beginning of the new year did see the Tigers drop behind in the top-six fight, but they have since bounced back in impressive fashion, winning three of their last four games as they firstly saw off Sunderland and Millwall in 1-0 victories.
A disappointing 1-0 defeat at home to Swansea City followed last weekend, but Rosenior's men were able to bounce back on Tuesday in a trip to basement side Rotherham United, coming from 1-0 down to prevail in a 2-1 win as Jaden Philogene netted an eye-catching leveller 19 minutes from time before Noah Ohio quickly added the decisive goal.
Having now narrowed the gap to sixth-placed Coventry City once again, Hull City only sit outside the playoff places on goal difference, and they will bid to crack the top six with a 15th league win of the campaign on Saturday.
Team News
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Still dealing with an unenviable injury list, Jon Worthington may field an unchanged Huddersfield Town starting XI from their midweek win over Sunderland on Saturday, with defenders Michal Helik, Josh Ruffels and Oliver Turton remaining confined to the treatment room alongside Jaheim Headley, Rhys Healey and Delano Burgzorg, while Kian Harratt is also ruled out through suspension.
Worthington switched to a 4-2-3-1 shape for that game, and Matty Pearson, Radinio Balker, Tom Lees and Brodie Spencer should certainly line up in an unchanged back four after the clean sheet, while David Kasumu and Alex Matos will likely continue in the engine room despite competition from Jonathan Hogg.
Ahead of them, Jack Rudoni, Ben Wiles and Sorba Thomas should again operate in support of lone striker Josh Koroma, who has netted three goals in their last six games, while Thomas boasts four goals and nine assists in 30 Championship appearances so far this term.
Hull City will likely travel to Huddersfield with a clean bill of health, aside from the ongoing absence of striker Liam Delap, and Liam Rosenior does still have options to rotate in attack, with Noah Ohio and Aaron Connolly vying to come into the front line in their 4-2-3-1 shape from the outset.
After scoring the winner off the bench, Ohio will likely replace Billy Sharp and operate as a lone striker, while Anass Zaroury, Fabio Carvalho and Jaden Philogene should continue in a dangerous supporting trio, with the latter boasting eight goals and five assists in just 17 Championship appearances so far this season.
Behind them, Tyler Morton and Regan Slater may again partner up in the engine room, despite the anticipated return of Jean-Michael Seri from the Africa Cup of Nations, while Alfie Jones and Jacob Greaves are bound to keep their places in the middle of the back four with Ryan Giles offering further threat from the left-hand side.
Huddersfield Town possible starting lineup:
Nicholls; Pearson, Balker, Lees, Spencer; Matos, Kasumu; Rudoni, Wiles, Thomas; Koroma
Hull City possible starting lineup:
Allsop; Coyle, Jones, Greaves, Giles; Slater, Morton; Philogene, Carvalho, Zaroury; Ohio
We say: Huddersfield Town 1-1 Hull City
Hull City have certainly enjoyed the better season of the two sides thus far and do boast a stronger squad on the whole, but this Huddersfield Town side is certainly galvanising and looks improved under Worthington in their bid to move further clear of the drop.
As a result, we cannot quite pick a winner and see a share of the points as the most likely outcome at the John Smith's Stadium.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Sam Varley
