Huddersfield Town dressing room reaction which sparked Man United victory

Huddersfield Town midfielder David Kasumu reflected on a “good night in the end” for his side after a much-improved second-half showing resulted in a 4-1 victory over Manchester United Under-21s. The Terriers ran out convincing winners against the Premier League academy at the John Smith’s Stadium in the EFL Trophy on Tuesday evening, which secured Town’s passage into the knockout stages of the competition.

Michael Duff’s side headed into the contest knowing that they needed to claim a victory to progress, which they achieved with goals from Ben Wiles, Rhys Healey, Kasumu and Tom Lees. However, the Terriers didn’t have it all their own way in the clash, as United pegged them back with an equaliser shortly before half-time, which left them requiring a response in the second half.

“It was a good win for the boys,” Kasumu told BBC Radio Leeds. “We all discussed in the changing room at half-time that we weren’t good enough first half. We came in at half-time at 1-1, [having] let them back into the game with some sloppy defending. Obviously we needed a reaction second half, which happened, and we ended up scoring three more goals, so it was job done.

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“Every game is important for us, we want to win every single game we play, and obviously after a disappointing result the other week (at Tamworth), we needed to react and really put in a performance, and keep the momentum going, because it’s another game of football that we want to win. We ended up winning in the end, rightfully so, the second half was way better.

“When we scored the third and the fourth we were playing better football, and there’s just a bit less pressure, because obviously we’ve got a two or three goal lead. It was a good night in the end, and happy to get the win.”

Town’s opponents headed into Tuesday’s contest having beaten Barnsley 3-2 at Oakwell, as well as registering a penalty shootout victory at Doncaster Rovers following a 3-3 draw at the Eco-Power Stadium.

Those results saw them pick up five points from their opening two matches of the group, but defeat at the John Smith’s Stadium led to their exit from the competition, with Town claiming second spot with six points. Kasumu spoke of the importance of his side respecting their youthful opponents, adding: “It’s one of those ones, they’re obviously a young team, but they’ve got quality, you’re not at Man United for no reason. You could see with their build-up and things like that, they are a team that are good on the ball, good individual brilliance higher up the field and what not, so obviously we knew they had quality.

“It’s just another game of football. It doesn’t matter the badge, the age, whatever, they’re coming here to win and we’re coming here to win. We got the win in the end, so it was good.

“You never know, in four or five years time a player might be worth £20 million in that squad. We had respect for them, it was another professional game and we took it seriously, so that’s all we can do.”

The Terriers now have another break in their fixture schedule, with their game at Wycombe Wanderers that was due to take place this weekend postponed due to international call-ups. Town are next in action when they host Charlton Athletic on November 23, and Kasumu is eager for his side to extend their five-game unbeaten run in League One when they return to the pitch.

“We’ll take a few days rest and what not, and obviously look to Charlton, and it’s another game where we need to try and continue the momentum that we’ve got in the league,” the midfielder said.