Sunday afternoon sees Huddersfield play host to Manchester United and although the two outfits are a million miles apart in terms of the Premier League table, neither club comes into this meeting with a decent spell of form behind them.
For Huddersfield, it has been a case of just getting to the final day of the season and putting this nightmare Premier League campaign behind them, something that come next Sunday they will finally be able to do.
Last Friday, the Terriers travelled to Anfield and although Jan Siewert should be commended for his bold approach, it was one that saw the league’s basement club on a hiding to nothing. A statement reinforced, when the Yorkshire outfit were 1-0 down within sixty seconds.
Although Huddersfield have been playing matches that resemble nothing more than free-hits, there is also a danger attached to their poor set of results and that danger, comes in the shape of taking a lack of momentum into next season’s EFL Championship.
Just because Huddersfield will drop down a level to the English second tier, does not mean that they can then flick a switch and start winning matches once more and this is something that Jan Siewert will be only too well aware of.
With that in mind, it remains to be seen if he adopts a more pragmatic approach for the visit of Manchester United on Sunday and if that is where some of the focus lies, the rest will lie on the goalkeeping issue that has plagued Old Trafford as of late.
Usually, David De Gea would be considered such a safe pair of hands and for some, he is even considered the best goalkeeper in the world. However, two recent performances have seen his stock decline at a rapid rate.
In the past, the Spanish international has been responsible for earning United points, while it is fair to say that errors against both Manchester City and Chelsea has meant points dropped and in turn United’s hopes of a top four finish have been dented.
The Red Devils now find themselves staring the weekend lying sixth in the Premier League table and very much the outsiders, when looking at the runners and riders for the ever-intensifying race for a Champions League place.
The only thing that is working in United’s favour, is the fact that they have two relatively fixtures to end the campaign and with everyone around them continuing to drop points, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and his players still have a semblance of hope.
That hope will be extinguished though, if United cannot find a first league win in four outings and although performances have been patchy over the past few weeks, they could not have asked for better opposition to face.
The only thing, that could work against them is Huddersfield looking to end their season with something resembling a flourish. At the same time, this seems rather unlikely and the smart money will be on a United win come Sunday.