Huddersfield Town will be looking to move themselves out of the bottom three in the Championship when they face Queens Park Rangers on Saturday afternoon at the John Smith's Stadium.
The Terriers are yet to win in 2023 in any competition and are in desperate need of points, whereas the R's have lost ground on the playoff places after a poor run of form under Neil Critchley.
Match preview
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Huddersfield rounded off 2022 in fashion with successive wins against Preston North End and relegation rivals Rotherham United, but since then, Mark Fotheringham's side have collected just a single point from three second-tier fixtures.
Town are in fact now four games without a win due to an FA Cup third-round defeat at the beginning of January, meaning there are no distractions from the grim reality of their Championship situation - the Terriers have 19 games to avoid an unthinkable drop into League One.
Fotheringham's men currently sit 22nd in the league standings, three points behind Cardiff City who lie just outside the bottom three - although the Welsh outfit have played two more games than their Yorkshire counterparts.
A team that was built on defensive solidity under Carlos Corberan last year has lost many of its key components such as Lewis O'Brien and Harry Toffolo, with Fotheringham tasked in keeping a set of players devoid of confidence in the Championship for another season.
Huddersfield have been significantly more productive on home soil than on their travels this campaign, with 17 of their 26 second-tier points coming at the John Smith's Stadium - a cause for cautious optimism on Saturday afternoon.
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When former boss Michael Beale rejected the advances of Premier League side Wolverhampton Wanderers for his highly-rated services in October, it felt as if QPR would be challenging at the very top of the division under a talented head coach.
Now at the start of February, the R's have ex-Blackpool manager Critchley in charge after Beale was lured to Scottish giants Rangers and are experiencing a run of one win in their last 13 Championship matches.
The London club are now five points adrift of sixth-placed Blackburn Rovers in the league standings and considering the resurgence of Michael Carrick's Middlesbrough and Corberan's West Bromwich Albion, the playoffs are looking like a very tough ask for QPR this season.
What will concern Critchley most will be the manner of some of his side's defeats in recent weeks, including last weekend's 3-0 loss to Hull City and the FA Cup exit at the hands of League One Fleetwood Town at the start of January.
The R's have failed to keep a clean sheet in their last six matches and need to tighten up at the back to allow the likes of Ilias Chair and Jamal Lowe to have deciding roles in matches with their goals and assists.
Team News
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Huddersfield are likely to hand a debut to new signing Tomas Vaclik on Saturday after the 33-year-old goalkeeper completed a move to Yorkshire this week from Olympiacos, with first-choice stopper Lee Nicholls currently sidelined due to a shoulder injury.
Martyn Waghorn was ineligible to face his parent club Coventry City in Town's last Championship fixture but will return to the matchday squad here to support Jordan Rhodes in attack, whereas Joseph Hungbo will be pushing for his first start since joining from Watford on loan.
Yuta Nakayama remains unavailable for the hosts this weekend after suffering an Achilles tendon injury in November, an issue which has ruled the 25-year-old out for the rest of the campaign.
QPR are still without right-back Ethan Laird this weekend due to the defender picking up a hamstring injury in the clash with Swansea City, meaning Osman Kakay will continue in that full-back role against Huddersfield on Saturday.
Critchley will also be unable to call on the services of Leon Balogun as the defender is out with a heel injury until later in the month, so it will be a centre-back pairing of Rob Dickie and Jimmy Dunne for the visitors in this one.
Huddersfield Town possible starting lineup:
Vaclik; Lees, Helik, Pearson; Lowton, Hogg, High, Ruffels; Rudoni, Hungbo, Waghorn
Queens Park Rangers possible starting lineup:
Dieng; Kakay, Dickie, Dunne, Paal; Dozzell, Field, Willock, Roberts, Chair; Lowe
We say: Huddersfield Town 1-2 Queens Park Rangers
Huddersfield will be boosted by the return of Waghorn in the matchday squad as well as a senior goalkeeping option, but face a difficult task against a QPR attack full of talented individuals.
Critchley knows he needs to get a tune out of his side very soon if QPR are to mount a playoff push this season, and we feel they will earn their first win of 2023 at the John Smith's Stadium on Saturday.
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Top tip
Carter White
