Kyle Hudlin has recently returned to Championship side Huddersfield Town after spending the first half of the season on loan at AFC Wimbledon.

The striker joined the Terriers in the summer from National League side Solihull Moors, but he didn’t stay around for long as he then went on to join Wimbledon on loan.

Now the 22-year-old has returned to the John Smith’s Stadium and managed to score a brace in the club’s 3-2 win over Brentford’s B team on Saturday.

Hudlin saw plenty of action in League Two; he featured 18 times and managed to grab four goals in the process. However, of those 18, only seven came as starts, but despite that, the 22-year-old believes the experience of playing in the EFL will help him in his career at Huddersfield.

Hudlin told htafc.com, via Yorkshire Live: “My loan spell with AFC Wimbledon was a great experience. It exposed me to the EFL, as I had only played in the National League before and gave me an insight into what’s to come.

“I learned a lot there, mentally, and physically, and I think it has put me in a better mindset and stronger position to push on here.

“More minutes in the legs and more game time at the weekend has helped us prepare for the game against Manchester City tomorrow, as well as more time playing with each other and gaining understanding of how everyone plays.

“The more we play together, the more we’ll gel and eventually we’ll become stronger as a team, rather than 11 individuals. At the end of the day, it will just be 11v11 and it will depend on who turns up on the day.

“Manchester City are going to be very well organised, and I see them trying to mimic the first team and get the identity through their Academy, but we’re all intelligent footballers and I feel like we’ll have to work at catching them on the counterattack and trust in our own ability because we’re more than capable on getting a result.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Verdict

There seems to be a bright future ahead for Hudlin despite the fact the striker isn’t playing for the first team yet. Many would have expected Hudlin to be part of the first team when he was bought; however, the Terriers have probably done the right thing by letting him get exposed to the EFL.

This will have helped the 22-year-old learn what it is like and see the differences between the Football League and National League. However, the concern will be that League Two is a lot different from the Championship, so the next step in his development may be another loan move, but to a team higher up the football pyramid.