“Losing patience” - Michael Duff urged to make key Huddersfield Town change v Barnsley as pressure grows | OneFootball

Michael Duff has been told to bring in Joe Hodge for Huddersfield Town's game against Barnsley.

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more...

Michael Duff has been told to start Joe Hodge against Barnsley as Huddersfield Town look to end a four-game losing streak this weekend.

The Terriers suffered relegation from the Championship last season, so there was an expectation that they would be in the mix to bounce back at the first attempt.

However, after a fantastic start, Huddersfield have now dropped into the bottom half, having lost four successive games.

Therefore, the pressure is growing on Duff ahead of the Yorkshire derby this weekend, which has added spice as he also used to be in charge at Oakwell.

Joe Hodge can make Huddersfield Town impact

Whilst there were some positives to take from the midweek defeat at league leaders Birmingham City, the reality is that it was another loss.

So, attention quickly turns to the visit of Barnsley, who will offer another stern test, as they sit just outside the play-off places.

And, speaking to FLW, fan pundit Graeme explained that he would look to bring Hodge in from the off, for a game that he admitted is reaching ‘must-win’ territory.

“Joe Hodge in for Kasumu.

“He uses the ball better and more quickly, and we play better at a higher tempo. Saturday is as close to a must-win game as you can have in early October, and it's a local derby.

“I said recently it was ludicrous to say Duff should go so early in his reign, but I fear that Town fans in general are already losing patience - there are rumours of a protest against Sporting Director Mark Cartwright on Saturday before the game.

“There is general unrest, and we need to go all out for the win.”

Hodge has featured six times for Huddersfield this season, although the majority of those outings have been from the bench.

The Wolves loanee could bring more composure and quality to the middle of the park, in a game that Huddersfield will look to dominate and control from the off.

Duff has been making changes to the side in recent weeks as he looks to find the right formula, which indicates he still doesn’t know his best XI.

Huddersfield Town have the quality to climb the table

You can understand the frustration of the fans, because, on paper, Huddersfield have a squad that should be able to compete with most at this level, and if they don’t make the play-offs this season, it has to be considered a failure.

The likes of Hodge, Joe Koroma and Jonathan Hogg were on the bench at St. Andrew’s, which highlights the strength in depth, and they will be hoping to start.

Overall, this recent run is unacceptable, and the fans are going to voice their anger - and they will also recognise that Duff isn’t the only problem at the club right now.

Having said that, it is only nine games into the campaign, whilst the manager is getting to grips with a new squad and new signings, so time is needed.

But, losing runs like this inevitably brings pressure, and now all eyes are on the big Barnsley game as Duff and Huddersfield look to get back on track.