Huddersfield Town are gearing up to welcome back something of a modern-day legend in Jordan Rhodes, as the striker prepares to leave relegated Sheffield Wednesday on a free transfer.  

It has been the long-term understanding of Football League World that Huddersfield plan to swoop to bring Rhodes back to the club he left all the way back in 2012.

Between 2009 and 2012, Rhodes had a superb strike-rate at the John Smith’s Stadium, scoring 87 goals in 148 appearances, helping Town free themselves of League One football.

Rhodes replicated that form with Blackburn Rovers, but we know his career has declined during spells with Middlesbrough and Sheffield Wednesday.

That leads us to the present day and to the point where all roads appear to lead Rhodes back to Huddersfield.

So, what can the club’s supporters expect from the 31-year-old in 2021/22 if it’s not going to be him smashing home 30 goals a season like he did before in Huddersfield?

As our graphic above (Wyscout) shows, the 2020/21 campaign has been a fairly modest one for the striker, but it’s actually been an improvement on what he’s delivered in recent years for Sheffield Wednesday.

Seven goals outperforms his expected goal tally, which is perhaps unsurprising given the fact that Rhodes has only had 15 shots on target over the course of the season so far.

That does, though, tell you that Rhodes’ know-how of where the back of the net is remains; a good striker never loses that, so you are told.

In terms of touches in the opposition penalty area, Rhodes averages 2.85 per 90, but it is maybe worth noting that he’s featured in a struggling side, who have eventually finished bottom of the pile in the Championship.

Four progressive runs don’t make particularly good reading, whilst one assist that coincidently came against Huddersfield and four shot assists, leave a lot to be desired too.

Rhodes does, though, recover the ball high up the pitch and pieces together a tidy pass completion for a forward that’s strength comes with tucking chances away.

However, we’ve previously compared Rhodes to Carlos Corberan’s go-to option in attack, Fraizer Campbell, with the stats showing then and now that the latter might be the better option moving into the new season.

Campbell’s future remains unclear at this moment in time. Corberan has revealed that talks with those out of contract at Huddersfield are just around the corner, whilst previously he’s been very complimentary about what the 33-year-old brings to his side.

 

 

Nevertheless, Huddersfield plan to motor on with their pursuit of Rhodes this summer.

The recruitment team at the club will be aware that Rhodes isn’t going to return the player he left. What they have seen this season, though, is a player that’s shown signs of rediscovering his old spark.

He’s been prolific with the chances that have fallen his way and stood out in a poor side at the bottom of the division that have struggled for goals.

Whether that’s enough to solve Huddersfield’s own problems, we are about to find out.