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Post by melbourneterrier on Oct 20, 2021 1:08:14 GMT 1
I wasn't overly excited when we signed him, and thought he would be just a bench player allowing the younger ones to go out on loan. Early on the season, I was more impressed with Pearson and Colwill.
Now, he'd be one of the first names on the team sheet!
I do wonder how long Sarr will stick around, I believe he is out of contract at seasons end? Do we sell him in January? I'd expect either (if not both) REG or Crichlow to be in the first team squad next season.
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goodbet
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Post by goodbet on Oct 20, 2021 9:38:16 GMT 1
I wasn't overly excited when we signed him, and thought he would be just a bench player allowing the younger ones to go out on loan. Early on the season, I was more impressed with Pearson and Colwill. Now, he'd be one of the first names on the team sheet! I do wonder how long Sarr will stick around, I believe he is out of contract at seasons end? Do we sell him in January? I'd expect either (if not both) REG or Crichlow to be in the first team squad next season. next season we will be without two defenders if we don't extend his contract because Colwill will goe back to Chelsea and even if they don't want him for their first team he will go out in to Europe for more experience. Do we think that REG, Critchlow with Lees and Pearson will be enough for us next season? Maybe but I think that it could be a risk with the short windows we have these days. In the past we would have had time to give them some games and then look to strengthen if it was thought necessary.
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Post by hypotenuse on Oct 20, 2021 13:42:23 GMT 1
2nd only to Sorba for player of the year so far for me. He's made a huge difference. I'd also put Nicholls ahead of him, but that's it so far. An absolute model of consistency. I’d put Lees ahead of both of those. Sorba is a real find and Nicholls could hardly have failed to be an improvement (though he has looked decent) but Lees is 8/10 every week - a priceless asset at this level.
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Post by Captainslapper on Oct 21, 2021 9:46:04 GMT 1
Another excellent game from Lees. Solid defending yet again and he probably had more of the ball than any other player on the pitch but used it very well, picking out his passes into midfield accurately. Needs to work on the weight of those dinks over the full back though!
Proving to be the best centre back we've signed since Schindler IMO.
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Post by Leporid on Oct 21, 2021 16:37:09 GMT 1
Another excellent game from Lees. Solid defending yet again and he probably had more of the ball than any other player on the pitch but used it very well, picking out his passes into midfield accurately. Needs to work on the weight of those dinks over the full back though! Proving to be the best centre back we've signed since Schindler IMO. It's good Town have signed a relatively old centre back whose legs haven't gone... He looks like he's got plenty of matches left in him. Could he become the Town supporters' favourite ever ex-Leeds United player?
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sheps
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Post by sheps on May 14, 2022 17:22:28 GMT 1
TOM LEES ATHELTIC ARTICLE
Huddersfield’s Tom Lees: ‘With Carlos Corberan I’ve stepped outside my comfort zone – and learnt so much’
Tom Lees Huddersfield By Richard Sutcliffe May 12, 2022 10 Save Article A year ago, Tom Lees was facing an uncertain future.
Into the final few weeks of his contract at Sheffield Wednesday, he had suffered a season-ending ankle injury just as clubs were tightening their financial belts because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Offers from elsewhere that had been made before the Birmingham-born defender landed awkwardly in a 3-1 defeat at Middlesbrough, ruling him out for the remaining two matches that sealed Wednesday’s relegation to League One, were suddenly off the table. Lees understood why, but that didn’t make the prospect of joining football’s legion of free agents in such a difficult market last summer any easier.
“I was worried,” says Lees, who has emerged as a mainstay of Huddersfield Town’s push for a Premier League return since joining Wednesday’s Yorkshire neighbours in August.
“Everyone thought the first season with COVID and lockdown would be the worst. But, really, it was last summer when the clubs really felt the impact.
“Anyone coming out of contract, I’d imagine they really felt it. I certainly did. I had something sorted but then the injury — and it was quite a bad one — happened. The offers just went.
“That’s the nature of the business, especially coming off the back of COVID. Finances are tight. Paying someone who isn’t fit enough to start (pre-season) training straight away becomes an issue. Definitely not an easy time.
“I knew my only chance was to prove I was over the injury. I worked so hard to get myself fit, knowing if I did that, then I could hopefully contribute somewhere.”
Lees has certainly done that. He didn’t sign for Huddersfield until August 1, the first day of their season; coincidentally, just a few hours before his new employers beat previous ones Wednesday in the opening round of the Carabao Cup.
His debut came 16 days later, at home to Preston North End, as Huddersfield claimed the first of 23 victories in a 46-game league campaign where they have confounded the bookies — only Blackpool and Peterborough United, two of the promoted sides, had longer odds to win promotion before a ball had been kicked in August — by finishing third, just six points off the automatic places.
Luton Town now await Carlos Corberan’s men — who took four points from the two regular-season meetings without conceding a goal — in the play-off semi-finals, with the first leg taking place at Kenilworth Road on Friday.
“We have had a very good season but we want to make it a great season,” says Lees, 31, who started his career at Leeds United after joining their academy as a young boy. “We are the underdogs. Everyone seems to have been waiting for us to drop out, probably since Christmas. But here we are.
“At times, it has been frustrating to be watching games (on TV) and there is no mention of us when it comes to the debate about who will go up. But we should embrace the fact no one expects us to be here.”
Will it be third time lucky in the Championship play-offs this month for Huddersfield’s Tom Lees? (Photo: Robbie Jay Barratt – AMA/Getty Images) Such an attitude certainly served Huddersfield well five years ago when all the talk before the play-offs centred on Slavisa Jokanovic’s Fulham, the lovely football being played by Reading under Jaap Stam and whether a Wednesday side featuring Lees could go one better after losing the previous year’s final to Hull City.
David Wagner’s men simply ignored all the outside noise to prevail on penalties against Wednesday at Hillsborough and then again when they met Reading at Wembley.
“We are in the play-offs for a reason,” Lees says. “Now, we have to give it absolutely everything, dedicate every second of the day to these few weeks, as the rewards are huge.
“You never know when you might get this chance again.”
“He’s probably the definition of the phrase, ‘Student of the game’. Every second of his day is football, he’s absolutely obsessed.”
Lees is talking about Corberan, the charismatic Spaniard whose remarkable recovery job at the John Smith’s Stadium has been achieved by putting into practice lessons learned from some of the game’s very best.
Most recently a member of Marcelo Bielsa’s staff up the road at Leeds United, Corberan had previously studied Pep Guardiola’s methods so intently that moving to Saudi Arabia in his 20s to learn under key members of the two-time Champions League winner’s inner circle seemed perfectly natural.
Corberan’s methods have transformed a club who had spectacularly lost their way after staying up against all the odds in that maiden season in the Premier League under Wagner — Huddersfield had won just 18, and lost 59, of their 100 league and cup games preceding his arrival in July 2020.
“I feel lucky to have learned so much this year,” says Lees, who is closing in on a career landmark of 500 league appearances. “Carlos has helped me step outside my comfort zone, which is definitely something I had to do.
“I needed to broaden my mind. I’d probably been a bit guilty in my career of thinking, ‘This is the Championship and this is the way things are done’. Coming here has made me much more open-minded to new ideas.
“I’ve learned so much from him. He’s always watching football, clipping football, and gathering examples that he can then show you about what he has learned. Everyone talks about Bielsa’s influence, but there is definitely more to it than that.
“He takes things from coaches all over the world. We watch football from lots of different leagues. The manager is always coming to you with ideas or something he has seen and saying, ‘You can incorporate this into your game’.
“The way this manager works is very different to anything I’ve ever experienced before. Even in my first couple of meetings with Carlos, I came out thinking, ‘I’ve learned loads there’. I have been playing a long time and had heard a lot of people’s thoughts on football but here was something genuinely new.
“Huddersfield’s success can only help the manager going forward, too. Players will think, ‘Look what he’s achieved — if I do open my mind and listen to him, he can develop me as a player’.”
Lees is in his 11th consecutive season as a Championship player with Leeds, Wednesday and now Huddersfield. Before that, he had spells on loan in League Two with Accrington Stanley and Bury, winning promotion with the latter in a 2010-11 season where he was voted their players’ player of the year.
He also has six England Under-21s caps from his Leeds days, including when he was one of only two non-Premier League players in a squad for the 2013 European Championship that featured future senior internationals Danny Rose, Jordan Henderson, Jonjo Shelvey, Wilfried Zaha, Nathaniel Clyne and Jack Butland.
Lees, No 7, rubbed shoulders with some big stars of the future at England Under-21 level (Photo by Adam Davy – PA Images via Getty Images) Lees, a huge boxing fan, perhaps appreciates more than most how much Huddersfield have been punching above their weight again this season. After finishing 18th and 20th in the second division in the previous two seasons, recruitment last summer was restricted to free agents and loans, meaning they had to find an edge in such a competitive market.
For instance, the pitch to sign Chelsea’s Levi Colwill on loan last summer included a detailed presentation to the European champions and the teenage defender as to how he would be deployed and developed if he came to Huddersfield. Similar efforts went into securing Norwich City’s Luxembourg international Danel Sinani and Tino Anjorin, who followed Chelsea colleague Colwill north in January.
Lees, as a free agent, might not have expected a similar level of focus on his own game. But Huddersfield again left no stone unturned in their attempts to get him on board.
“Huddersfield are very progressive in their thinking,” Lees explains. “Very modern in their approach. I was shown what the club calls an ‘Individual Development Plan’ for a couple of their players. Basically, outlining what they have done to develop these players.
“They also showed me what they thought could be done with my game. I found it really interesting and I’d say people have probably seen a different side to my game this season as a result of coming here. Particularly, in terms of what to do with the ball.”
This desire to try something new may yet take Lees all the way to the Premier League.
He’s come close twice, reaching the Championship play-offs with Wednesday in back-to-back seasons.
A 1-0 defeat to Hull City at Wembley in May 2016 was followed by that semi-final loss on penalties to Huddersfield 12 months later. Both stung badly — Lees’ own-goal late in the second half of the decider at Hillsborough was the only one Huddersfield scored in the tie — adding to his determination to make it third time lucky this month.
“My big memory is how intense the play-offs can be,” he says. “That and a bit of a lottery. It can come down to one decision, one mistake, one fantastic piece of skill. Just something on the day that you can’t legislate for.
“Having said that, I do believe being there a couple of times already will help me. Make me that little bit more relaxed.”
With an 18-month-old toddler intent on causing mischief at home, Lees admits relaxing away from the games isn’t always easy. The Athletic’s suggestion that keeping track of Lees junior might be harder than marking most Championship strikers brings a knowing smile before he quips: “He’s quicker than some as well!”
In truth, Lees has proved more than a match for the second tier’s best forwards.
Alongside mainly Colwill and Matty Pearson — also signed on a free transfer last summer, in his case from Luton — he has helped Huddersfield keep 19 clean sheets in the league this season, a total bettered only by Bournemouth (21) and Sheffield United (20).
Just 47 goals have been conceded, seventh-least in the division. That’s in stark contrast to last season, when Corberan’s Huddersfield had the leakiest defence in the Championship, being beaten 71 times.
Now, the challenge is to maintain that form in the play-offs as Lees looks to bring the curtain down in style on a 12 months that began last May with those worries over his future.
“It all seems a long time ago now,” he says about that ankle injury which brought an abrupt end to his seven years playing for Wednesday. “But things have definitely worked out. I’m so glad I was able to prove my fitness and get this chance.
“At the time, Huddersfield seemed a really well-run club and something to get involved in. That’s how it has been.
“I can’t say I totally expected this. We have done a bit better than even we probably expected. But I knew there was a chance of things going well.
“Now, we just have to finish the job. Whether you are 31 or 19, you never know when an opportunity like this might come again. We have to take it.”
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Post by Chips Longhorn on May 14, 2022 17:29:29 GMT 1
The "Bromby needs sacking if we've signed Lees " post hasn't aged very well 😀
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Post by andyeastleake on May 14, 2022 17:41:17 GMT 1
The "No Interest in Tom Lees" post from Maynard Blue at the bottom of page 1 received 70 likes (not many posts get that many).
A lot of fairly regular posters on DATM (including myself) liked it.
Given his Leeds and MWednesday background and the deline of Wednesday, not sure the 70 could be blamed too much for that view but he's certainly been a very solid performer this season.
... still some way off Lee Nicholls though as POTS (IMHO).
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Post by Chips Longhorn on May 14, 2022 17:45:05 GMT 1
The "No Interest in Tom Lees" post from Maynard Blue at the bottom of page 1 received 70 likes (not many posts get that many). A lot of fairly regular posters on DATM (including myself) liked it. Given his Leeds and MWednesday background and the deline of Wednesday, not sure the 70 could be blamed too much for that view but he's certainly been a very solid performer this season. ... still some way off Lee Nicholls though as POTS (IMHO). Yeah it appeared uninspired at the time . Possibly outfield pots
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Post by ilsonterrier on May 14, 2022 18:44:20 GMT 1
The "No Interest in Tom Lees" post from Maynard Blue at the bottom of page 1 received 70 likes (not many posts get that many). A lot of fairly regular posters on DATM (including myself) liked it. Given his Leeds and MWednesday background and the deline of Wednesday, not sure the 70 could be blamed too much for that view but he's certainly been a very solid performer this season. ... still some way off Lee Nicholls though as POTS (IMHO). I was uninspired by the signing, felt it showed a lack of ambition by the club, but I've been proved very wrong. He's one of those players who just goes about his job without any fuss and he's had a great season.
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Post by themanfromatlantis on May 14, 2022 19:12:49 GMT 1
Maybe all this proves, is that 99% of us know fuckall about professional football?
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Post by overtonterrierspirit on May 15, 2022 0:12:26 GMT 1
Agree.
I’ve watched him all season.
I cannot remember ever seeing a more consistent central defender.
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Post by tvor on May 15, 2022 0:28:36 GMT 1
Hope he scores for Town again in a play off semi playing in blue and white stripes on Monday night.
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Post by huntingdontown on May 15, 2022 7:52:00 GMT 1
Great signing so calm on the ball his lack of pace worries me if we go up
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Post by dugnet on May 15, 2022 8:25:47 GMT 1
File Tom Lees into the "(yet) another thing I was wrong about this season". He's been outstanding.
His experience on Monday could be crucial.
I don't think I can remember a season when we have had so many candidates for POTS. Tom is certainly one of those.
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leroy212
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Post by leroy212 on May 15, 2022 8:38:22 GMT 1
Great signing so calm on the ball his lack of pace worries me if we go up schindler had a lack of pace and he did alright when we went up
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Post by The King's Head 1230 on May 15, 2022 8:41:09 GMT 1
Magnificent from the Peter Clarke mould
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Champers
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Post by Champers on May 15, 2022 9:09:09 GMT 1
I was another one of those posters who liked Maynard's post on page one as I honestly thought we were getting some clapped out, mistake-prone journeyman. Well, like a few others have, I'm holding my hand up to say I couldn't have been more wrong. All 4 centre backs have been terrific this season but he has been the best of the bunch for me. Absolutely solid and a top pro. I really hope we can go up to give him a much deserved shot at the top level.
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Tinpot
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Post by Tinpot on May 15, 2022 17:08:31 GMT 1
Along with Carlos and Leigh Bromby, he's one of many to have me eating humble pie this season.
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k1man999
Andy Booth Terrier
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Post by k1man999 on May 15, 2022 18:43:28 GMT 1
Great signing so calm on the ball his lack of pace worries me if we go up schindler had a lack of pace and he did alright when we went up He was better on the ball and seemed to have time and composure. But agree lees has been fantastic this season
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Post by richhtfc on May 15, 2022 20:13:07 GMT 1
schindler had a lack of pace and he did alright when we went up He was better on the ball and seemed to have time and composure. But agree lees has been fantastic this season I’m gonna get slated for this but I think Lees is a better defender personally.
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leroy212
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Post by leroy212 on May 15, 2022 21:44:34 GMT 1
He was better on the ball and seemed to have time and composure. But agree lees has been fantastic this season I’m gonna get slated for this but I think Lees is a better defender personally. Is it because he seems more of an old school defender. Tackle and get rid of ball. Instead of been a ball player center back
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Post by richhtfc on May 15, 2022 22:15:27 GMT 1
I’m gonna get slated for this but I think Lees is a better defender personally. Is it because he seems more of an old school defender. Tackle and get rid of ball. Instead of been a ball player center back Thought Schindler was poor against high balls into the box sometimes, like the Murray goal in the semi final at Wednesday. We conceded a few times like that. I just think Lees is steadier all round, great organiser. Love Schindler too obviously.
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Post by specialun on May 15, 2022 22:42:43 GMT 1
He’s been excellent, consistent, solid, dependable, calm etc
I’d add he’s been helped by Carlos shifting his approach from Bielsa’s aggressive man to man approach realising he doesn’t have players to do that to a much more passive defensive approach. I expect Lees would have struggled as much as anyone in the methods we adopted last season - that’s not a dig at the coaching team it’s credit for learning from errors - I’d still like a less defensive approach but no doubting it has helped make us far more organised / harder to beat
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Post by huntingdontown on May 27, 2022 19:53:10 GMT 1
Just watched his interview I think he is too excited to play!!!
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Post by SW6 on May 27, 2022 19:56:54 GMT 1
Tom Lees is a real threat from corners and dead ball kicks and hes due another goal.
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Post by Mastercracker on May 27, 2022 20:02:00 GMT 1
He was better on the ball and seemed to have time and composure. But agree lees has been fantastic this season I’m gonna get slated for this but I think Lees is a better defender personally. I think he’s been better than Schindler was in the champ, but I don’t think he has Schindlers first season prem performances in his locker.
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Post by Terrier Ramone on May 27, 2022 21:14:39 GMT 1
Just watched his interview I think he is too excited to play!!! Having watched that interview, it has now become blatantly obvious why he wasn't seen on any of the Portugal training camp videos, the lad has just come out of a coma.
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Post by yellowbelly on May 28, 2022 0:25:13 GMT 1
So much for the little red crosses.
Sounds like he is playing.
Bluff or double bluff ?
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Post by rockwall on May 28, 2022 7:33:30 GMT 1
Is it because he seems more of an old school defender. Tackle and get rid of ball. Instead of been a ball player center back Thought Schindler was poor against high balls into the box sometimes, like the Murray goal in the semi final at Wednesday. We conceded a few times like that. I just think Lees is steadier all round, great organiser. Love Schindler too obviously. 1. It was Fletcher. 2. Murray played for Brighton. I agree with your comment though. Imagine Lees and Schindler as a partnership?
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