Huddersfield Town have a chance to end years of turmoil

The past six years have featured no shortage of chaos for Huddersfield Town, but this summer is their best chance yet to pull off a cultural reset

It’s only natural that Huddersfield Town fans want to see David Wagner back at the club, even if there’s a good chance he won’t return.

The desire to see their promotion-winning manager come back is, of course, largely built on what he achieved during his last spell at the John Smith’s Stadium. The club has fallen since then, and even the hope that the worst was surely over was dashed by a truly dreadful second half of the season that saw Town drop well below the top six, squandering any chance of promotion.

But it’s not just a nostalgia trip driving this wishful thinking. Wagner’s spell as manager under the ownership of Dean Hoyle was the last time Town fans were able to feel like everything was coming together both on and off the pitch. Their inability to do one or the other at various points throughout the interim is what left them mid-table in League One in the first place.

Under Wagner, Town had a clear style of play and a defined culture, helped by the mass influx of German players who helped raise the standards on the turf. Since Carlos Corberan’s departure in 2022, they have had nothing of the sort. Town cannot begin climbing the pyramid again until they resolve that.

For all the good work Kevin Nagle’s regime has done off the pitch, and all the investment he has made in the club and its facilities, the current ownership — by their own admission — are still far from having cracked it on the field.