Huddersfield enter the international break on the back of a mini resurgence having secured back-to-back victories at Stoke City and at home to Hull City at the weekend, which has managed to lift the Terriers out of the relegation zone.

Those two wins were vital for Danny Cowley’s side as they begin to show positive signs under the former Lincoln City manager, and also crucially they ended a nine-game winless at the start of the season following their relegation from the Premier League.

That has provided hope that Huddersfield can now find some consistency in terms of their form and results and begin to start climbing the Championship table, and Cowley’s side will face the test of whether they can sustain their new-found form after the international break.

One player who has been key to Huddersfield’s wins against Stoke and Hull was midfielder Juninho Bacuna, who has looked a player transformed in the last two matches and showing signs he could be key to helping Cowley’s side build momentum.

Here, we take a look at three reasons why Bacuna could be a driving force behind a Huddersfield revival throughout the rest of the season…

Ability to replace the loss of Aaron Mooy

Huddersfield supporters would have been somewhat frustrated by the club’s decision to allow midfielder Aaron Mooy to leave the club on loan to Premier League Brighton and Hove Albion during the transfer window, and the Australian international’s quality and composure in possession has been a real loss for the Terriers so far this season.

Mooy was a vital player in the Huddersfield side which earned promotion in the 2016/17 season via the play-offs, and the Terriers are in need of another player who can replicate his performances for them this term, and in Bacuna they could have found that player.

Bacuna offers extra technical quality to Huddersfield’s midfield, as well as the ability to drive forwards in possession and arrive into dangerous positions in the final third, which is something that the Terriers have been lacking and will need to take advantage of for the rest of the campaign.

Ability to add goals from midfield

Huddersfield have struggled in the final third at times so far this season, with the Terriers heavily reliant on striker Karlan Grant who has six goals to his name far, and Cowley’s side will need to start finding goals from other areas of the pitch if they are to continue their revival.

Bacuna has shown with his goal from the bench at Stoke that he is able to offer an extra threat in the box arriving with a late run from midfield, which is something that will be vital to help relieve some of the pressure of Grant’s shoulders and provide an extra thing for opposition defenders to worry about.

The 22-year-old demonstrated that his goal at Stoke was not a one off, with the midfielder adding a second goal in two games in Huddersfield’s 3-0 win against Hull on Saturday, and Bacuna’s all round game from the bench, as well as his goal, was hugely encouraging and suggests that this is a player ready to stamp his authority on the Terriers’ starting line-up.

Bacuna’s ability to offer something different in midfield

Huddersfield’s midfield has at times this season been too static and one paced, with the experienced Jonathan Hogg partnering Chelsea loanee Trevoh Chalobah at the base of midfield in most of the Terriers matches so far this campaign, and while both players are decent in possession they lack the ability to drive with the ball and get their team up the pitch.

Bacuna has shown in his last two performances from the bench that he offers something different to Huddersfield’s midfield, with the 22-year-old perhaps less reliable in terms of knowing what he is going to do, but with more potential to provide a creative spark.

Huddersfield will be needing Bacuna’s dynamism in their midfield in the coming matches and if the 22-year-old can continue his recent form then Cowley will face a very difficult decision to keep him on the bench, with Bacuna demonstrating that he is ready to make a consistent impact in the Terriers midfield.