Huddersfield Town v Reading: Terriers opt for substance over style as Carlos Corberan targets hat-trick

Amid all the talk about playing style which has been by his side since his arrival, the Huddersfield Town head coach – in his second season managing in one of the most competitive divisions in world football – has quickly grown to accept that game management and concentration supersedes it in terms of importance.

Management was sloppy – some would say wretched in that regard – in Town’s last Saturday home game against Fulham, but it was markedly better in their next appointment against Preston as the result indicated.

Despite being second best in a footballing sense against Sheffield United last weekend, Town’s organisation, spirit and management could not largely be faulted. It can go a long way.

It was a late aberration from the hosts which proved the game-breaking factor in that particular derby, with concentration not class settling the lion’s share of matches at this level.

Corberan, whose side will be provided with the psychological filip of moving onto double-figures in terms of points if they triumph today, said: “We have to understand that results are a consequence of managing different types of situations well. The style can help you manage games better and for me we can perform better. When you do that, you have more options to win games.

“But it does not mean that you win if you are performing well. The mentality of the team is very important to achieving one positive result.

“You can talk about style. But if you arrive in one set-piece situation and don’t defend with the intensity that the situation demands, all the work you have done won’t achieve anything – in the space of one second.

“Football can be like life. You can be driving your car with a lot of concentration in a travel of 90 minutes.

“But if you lose concentration for just one minute, you can have an accident that can change everything.”

Alongside moving the club to double figures if they prevail today, victory would represent a significant moment in another regard for Huddersfield.

Namely, it would constitute the first time that Town have won three games on the trot during the command of Corberan.

But he knows that is by no means straightforward for his own side or for any Championship rival for that matter.

“To win three games in a row in the Championship is going to be a high challenge,” the Spaniard commented.

“It does not happen to us and many times in the league, so it means it is something very tough to achieve. You need to move to your limits and move your level to the highest point you can individually and collectively.

“But at the same time, there is desire and determination to get a positive result.”