Bristol City 2 Huddersfield Town 1 - Terriers left to rue missed chances

The big striker netted on 22 minutes, running through unchallenged, after Antoine Semenyo had dummied an Alfie Mawson pass, and wrong-footing goalkeeper Ryan Schofield before shooting into an unguarded net.

Diedhiou doubled the advantage four minutes later, latching onto Kasey Palmer’s ball into the box and firing low past the exposed Schofield.

Juninho Bacuna reduced the deficit with a close-range shot from Isaac Mbenza’s clever backheel just before the hour. And it took a brilliant late save from Dan Bentley to preserve three points for the hosts when he kept out Bacuna’s late volley from 25 yards.

Huddersfield were unlucky on the balance of play but Diedhiou now has six goals in his last seven appearances and is keeping City’s play-off bid on course.

Both sides had chances in an open start to the game. Nahki Wells should have done better for City than glance a header wide from Adrian Mariappa’s second-minute cross, before Lewis O’Brien’s penetrating run ended with a shot that was tipped onto a post by Bentley.

While Diedhiou’s double salvo looked to have put City in command, the visitors still threatened going forward and O’Brien had another effort blocked.

The second half began like the first, as Bentley raced from his line to deny Fraizer Campbell.

O’Brien saw his low drive blocked in a crowded box and a Campbell shot was deflected for a corner. Bacuna’s goal was well deserved and Campbell should have made it 2-2 soon afterwards, volleying badly wide from Toffolo’s pinpoint cross.

Vallejo thundered a shot against the crossbar, Bentley tipped over from Bacuna, before Pipa’s added-time shot was deflected onto a post.

Head coach Carlos Corberan admitted: “It is very difficult to win football matches if you concede two goals through poor defending, as we did in the first half.

“In the end we had many chances to add to our one goal but the game became unbalanced through the ones we gave away.

“We always aim to create chances ourselves and limit the opposition’s efforts at our goal. The second half performance was just what we wanted.

“But as always we will carefully analyse why we lost the game and look to improve.

“I felt we only attacked well down the left in the first half and were much more balanced in the second.

“We need to defend better if we are to be competitive. Once we started dealing with the runs of their number nine, we looked much better.

“Our start to games needs to improve and (we) have to work the same for every one of the 90 minutes.”

Bristol City: Bentley, Mariappa, Kalas, Mawson, Rowe (Hunt 40), Semenyo, Vyner, Bakinson, Palmer (Moore 81), Diedhiou (Martin 64), Wells (Nagy 65). Unused substitutes: O’Leary, Bell, Owura Edwards, Massengo, Morton.

Huddersfield Town: Schofield, Pipa, Keogh, Sarr, Toffolo, Bacuna, Vallejo (Pritchard 73), O’Brien, Mbenza, Campbell, Aarons (Phillips 82). Unused substitutes: Duhaney, Thomas, Crichlow-Noble, Rowe, Jones, Joel Pereira, High.

Referee: S Martin (Staffordshire).

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