Preview: Barnsley vs Huddersfield Town - prediction, team news, lineups

Separated by two points at the top end of the League One table in the early stages of the new season, Barnsley and Huddersfield Town will square off in a Yorkshire derby at Oakwell on Saturday.

The visitors currently sit second, four places above their hosts, while both teams progressed to the EFL Cup third round in midweek.

Match preview

Barnsley return to League One action on Saturday aiming to bounce back from their first defeat of the season last weekend.

After finishing the 2024-25 term under the stewardship of Conor Hourihane, they headed into the new campaign under his new permanent management and have enjoyed an encouraging start, as they put 10 points on the board in their first four outings, beginning with 3-1 and 3-2 triumphs over Plymouth Argyle and Burton Albion respectively.

The Reds then shared the points in a 1-1 draw with fellow promotion-chasers Bolton Wanderers, before bouncing back to winning ways in a trip to Peterborough United last Tuesday with Caylan Vickers netting the only goal on the stroke of half time.

A first setback then followed in a trip to newly-promoted AFC Wimbledon, as Mathew Stevens and Antwoine Hackford condemned them to a 2-0 defeat, but they do head into the weekend on the back of a return to winning ways in midweek, having progressed past South Yorkshire rivals Rotherham United in the EFL Cup with a 2-1 win thanks to second-half goals from Jon Russell and Adam Phillips.

Now turning their focus back to their latest promotion bid in England's third tier, with plenty of encouragement to take from a fast start, Barnsley will bid to put last weekend's disappointment behind them and make it four wins and 13 points from six league outings on Saturday.

They face a tough test, though, as the visitors make the short trip on the back of a strong start and midweek cup win of their own.

After falling short of an immediate promotion back to the Championship last time around, Huddersfield Town turned to Lee Grant to take charge over the summer and find themselves second after five League One games having won four of those, firstly seeing off Leyton Orient and Reading, scoring five goals and not conceding in the process.

The Terriers would then leave Blackpool empty-handed, but they have since bounced back with another pair of victories and clean sheets, firstly seeing off Doncaster Rovers before hosting Stevenage last weekend and ending the visitors' perfect record with a 1-0 triumph as Alfie May scored the only goal.

Grant's men then turned their focus to EFL Cup action on Tuesday in a tough trip to top-flight Sunderland, and they progressed in impressive fashion, coming out on top in a penalty shootout after a 1-1 draw in 90 minutes as they led through Leo Castledine and were pegged back late by Marc Guiu.

Huddersfield Town now head into another difficult test in England's third tier with the hope of moving to the summit of the table with a third straight league win and a fourth in all competitions.

Barnsley League One form:

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Barnsley form (all competitions):

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Huddersfield Town League One form:

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Huddersfield Town form (all competitions):

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Team News

After making some rotations for their midweek cup tie against Rotherham United, Barnsley should revert to a similar starting XI from last week's trip to AFC Wimbledon, with Marc Roberts remaining confined to the treatment room.

Luca Connell should return to the midfield, likely alongside Jon Russell, although Vimal Yoganathan, Jonathan Bland and Patrick Kelly will also compete for spots.

David McGoldrick and Adam Phillips should also come back into the forward line from the outset, rejoining Caylan Vickers and Davis Keillor-Dunn, who has netted 20 goals in 47 League One games for the Reds since his arrival early last season.

Huddersfield Town will remain without Jacob Chapman, Antony Evans and Mickel Miller on Saturday due to ongoing injuries.

Lee Grant should also make some changes to his starting XI from midweek despite their impressive result against Sunderland, with Alfie May likely to come back in and lead the line having scored twice in League One since his summer arrival after hitting 82 over the previous four seasons in England's second tier.

He could have support from Leo Castledine, who opened his account for the Terriers in their EFL Cup win, Ben Wiles and Marcus Harness, while Herbie Kane and Ryan Ledson may both return to the midfield from the outset despite competition from David Kasumu and Daniel Vost.

Barnsley possible starting lineup:

Cooper; Watson, De Gevigney, Shepherd, Earl; Russell, Connell; Vickers, Phillips, Keillor-Dunn; McGoldrick

Huddersfield Town possible starting lineup:

Goodman; Gooch, Low, Whatmough, Roughan; Kane, Ledson; Castledine, Wiles, Harness; May

We say: Barnsley 1-2 Huddersfield Town

Both sides certainly possess the tools to hurt their opponents, and we anticipate a tight and entertaining encounter on Saturday at Oakwell.

We give a slight edge to the visitors, who have adapted seamlessly under Lee Grant and boast an abundance of quality and experience all over the pitch.

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