McCarthy Tight-Lipped on Team to Face Terriers Friday, 16th Oct 2015 16:25 Boss Mick McCarthy is keeping his team selection for Saturday’s home game against Huddersfield close to his chest after saying he would make changes following the 2-0 defeat at Blackburn prior to the international break with the Blues having won just one of their last six league matches. In addition to recent results, McCarthy says the busy fixture schedule, Town travel to Hull on Tuesday and Nottingham Forest next Saturday, has also come into his thinking ahead of the game against the Terriers. “I’m not going to be telling you what I’m doing but we have got three games in the space of a week, possibly playing three formations,” he said. “In the past I’ve had 16 players and I’ve probably looked and thought that there’s never going to be many changes, I couldn’t use the squad that much. “But I think I can now, I can comfortably use it knowing I’ve got players who can step up when needed.” He says no one in his squad is undroppable: “There are no untouchables at all but there are certain [players] where I know whether they’re my best ones or not. “They may well not have been having the best time in the world at this moment in time, but I know ultimately over 46 games who’ll be the best players.” He admits that there will be those on the fringes of his team who will be thinking that they ought to get their chance at some point soon given the team’s recent form. “I’d be disappointed if they weren’t thinking that,” he added. “Like I said, we’ve got three games this week and three tough ones, starting with Huddersfield and then we’ve got two really tough away games.” He says he and his staff haven’t made too many changes to their approach to training in the fortnight since the defeat at Blackburn, which saw the Blues drop to 12th in the table, although still only three points off the play-offs and five from second. “Not really, we’ve probably highlighted the fact that we’ve tried to be more progressive with the ball and a bit more open and expansive. “We’ve always been the best at closing teams down, stopping the opposition playing, killing their chief. “And I don’t think we’ve done that as well, and when we do that we do it as well as anybody, probably better than most. “In trying to do something else I think we’ve lost a bit of that. That’s been highlighted and hopefully it’ll be put into practice tomorrow.” Huddersfield are 18th in the table having won just two games this season and lost 3-0 at Wolves last time out. However, McCarthy believes they have a decent squad: “We looked at Bristol City two or three weeks ago and they didn’t look like a team that should be bottom of the league and I look at the players that Huddersfield have got. “Mustapha Carayol and Sean Scannell on either wing and up front they’ve got Ishmael Miller or Harry Bunn or Nahki Wells or James Vaughan, who is back fit having played in a friendly at Manchester City this week. And there’s Emyr Hughes in the middle of the park. McCarthy admits that his side need a win with their last victory at Portman Road the 2-0 defeat of Burnley on August 18th. “Of course we do,” he added. “We’re at home, we’ve had two home draws and two not great performances so we do need a win, but there’s nothing to suggest that we won’t go to Hull and Forest and beat them. “I’m not going to be putting this down as a 'must win' but everyone I spoke to at the club golf day this week was saying ‘We need a win this weekend’, well it’s as plain as the nose on my face that we need to start winning again.” The Town boss has plenty of options selection-wise throughout his team but seems unlikely to make wholesale changes. The Blues boss will probably stick with Dean Gerken in goal, but defensively he may look to switch things around with Town having conceded 17 in the first 10 games this season. With Jonas Knudsen available again having been ill for the Blackburn match, the Dane could return on the left of the defence, which would allow Jonny Parr to move to right-back and potentially skipper Luke Chambers to revert to his preferred central role if McCarthy is looking to rest either Christophe Berra or Tommy Smith. Summer Polish signing Piotr Malarczyk is another alternative. In midfield, Kevin Bru could come into the centre of the midfield for Jonathan Douglas alongside Cole Skuse, while Tommy Oar looks set to be handed his full league debut on the left with Ryan Fraser absent for at least two months with a knee injury and with the Town boss having no plans to bring anyone else in as cover. On the right, Ainsley Maitland-Niles will probably start ahead of Larsen Touré. Up front, McCarthy is likely to start all four of his strikers at some stage over the next three games but may opt to pair Freddie Sears, perhaps the most dangerous of the quartet so far this season, with David McGoldrick, whose performances from the bench prior to the break may have won him a start. Daryl Murphy and Brett Pitman are likely to play a part from the bench. As McCarthy says Huddersfield could have striker James Vaughan back in their squad after a calf injury, while skipper Mark Hudson may return from an ankle injury. On-loan Aston Villa keeper Jed Steer has extended his spell with the West Yorkshiremen for a further month. “I’m expecting a very hard game, like they always are in the Championship,” Terriers boss Chris Powell told his club’s official site. “Mick McCarthy’s teams know their roles, because he’s a top quality manager. He’s managed in the Premier League, he’s managed in the Championship and done very well wherever he’s been. “He’s one of the guys I’ve always had massive respect for because of how he builds his teams, how he builds the camaraderie and how he builds the way they play. “He has added to the players that got into the play-offs last year, but we can take heart from the fact we played well against them last year. “We know they’ve got players with decent quality who can do well and I know it’s going to be a game where we’re going to have to be ready from the minute we turn up at Portman Road.” Historically, Town have won 21 games between the sides (including the only cup tie), the Terriers 12, with eight ending in draws. Huddersfield have only ever won twice at Portman Road in 1959/60 and 1996/97. The Terriers have won just two games this season, back to back victories at Charlton and at home to Bolton within five days this time last month. In April, Town’s play-off aspirations suffered a significant blow as they were beaten 2-1 by Huddersfield at the John Smith’s Stadium. Nahki Wells and James Vaughan gave the Terriers a two-goal half-time lead and despite Luke Varney netting three minutes after the break the Blues were unable to get back on terms. Earlier in the season, in October last year, Huddersfield came from two goals down to draw 2-2 with the Blues at Portman Road. Tommy Smith put Town ahead in the 21st minute, Christophe Berra made it 2-0 on 55 but Nahki Wells pulled one back via a contentious 70th minute penalty and then equalised eight minutes from time. Blues academy coach Alan Lee was with the West Yorkshiremen until the summer of 2013 before returning to Town. Huddersfield striker Nahki Wells spent time on trial at Portman Road as a teenager and did enough to be asked to stay on for a longer spell but the homesick youngster opted to go back to Bermuda and the Dandy Town Hornets before later making his return to English football with Carlisle and then Bradford before joining the Terriers in January 2014. Saturday’s referee is Andy Davies from Hampshire, who has shown 25 yellow cards and two red in eight games so far this season. Davies will be taking charge of the Blues for the first time but has previously refereed two games involving the Terriers, last season’s 3-0 home win against Nottingham Forest and a 1-1 card fest with Brighton at the John Smith’s Stadium the season before in which he booked seven, including four Huddersfield players. Squad from: Gerken, Bialkowski, Chambers (c), Parr, Knudsen, Berra, Smith, Malarczyk, Skuse, Douglas, Bru, Coke, Maitland-Niles, Touré, Oar, Tabb, Sears, Pitman, Murphy, McGoldrick.
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