Huddersfield Town pin hopes on marquee signing Joe Taylor being the missing piece in jigsaw in League One promotion quest

The League One promotion-chasers have finally signed the former Luton Town striker - who they had chased since last summer - on a deal until the summer of 2029.

The 22-year-old has joined for an undisclosed fee, but it is believed that the package to sign the player has seen the club shelve out a significant seven-figure outlay.

Fourth-placed Town, who are inactive on Saturday with their scheduled trip to Shrewsbury postponed due to a frozen pitch, are well positioned in the top six, but goals from their striking contingent have proved a problem all season.

Midfielder Ben Wiles, with six goals, is their current top-scorer.

The acumen of Wales under-21 forward Taylor was seen last season when he excelled in loan spells at Colchester United and Lincoln City.

After scoring 12 times in 27 appearances for the U's in the first half of 2023-24, he was recalled by Luton and allowed to test himself at League One at play-off chasing Lincoln, where he added an impressive 10 goals in 19 outings.

Those numbers prompted strong interest from Huddersfield, with their persistence having finally paid off regarding Taylor, who has made 13 Championship appearances from the bench for Luton so far this season.

Sporting director Mark Cartwright said: "We’ve had to remain extremely patient to get this deal complete and we’re really pleased that the hard work done alongside Luton Town has allowed Joe to join us.

"With a lot of interest in him across both League One and the Championship, it’s an exciting addition to make, especially after coming so close to acquiring his services in the summer.

"His goalscoring record at this level speaks for itself, but his overall game is something we find attractive, as he adds something completely different to our forward options.

"We made no secret of our desire to address the top end of the pitch and Joe has always been a key target for us, with chairman Kevin Nagle providing his full backing in order to make this deal possible."

Boss Michael Duff, whose side are unbeaten in 15 matches at league level since October, added: "We have wanted to add to our forward line since the summer, but only with the right profile and standard of player and we believe Joe is just that.”