Lee Grant drops new Huddersfield Town claim after Terriers sack | OneFootball

Lee Grant has broken the silence on his Huddersfield Town departure

It's been over a month now since Lee Grant was relieved of his duties at Huddersfield Town, after he was unable to meet the lofty expectations set out for him pre-season.

There was no doubt that Grant had high expectations at the Accu Stadium. Many had expected him to follow in the footsteps of Kieran McKenna, who oversaw Ipswich Town's rise from League One to the Premier League, of which the former goalkeeper was a part of his coaching staff.

Those expectations, paired with a summer transfer window that resulted in Huddersfield's squad, on paper, being one of the best in the division, meant that anything but a top-two finish would have been a little disappointing.

As it happened, the Terriers were in the top six, but with sides below them holding games in hand, and having gone winless in four league games, the higher-ups decided to pull the trigger and sack him, appointing Liam Manning in his place.

Lee Grant reflects on short time as Huddersfield Town manager

In an ideal world, Grant's first role as the main man in the dugout would have lasted a little longer than just 36 games. However, there were plenty of positives to take from it, as he detailed in a post on LinkedIn on Sunday.

"As managers, we know the landscape we are operating in can be a brutal one. It's certainly all-consuming. At the same time, it brings huge fulfilment and joy. I loved every moment and every facet of my time as Manager of Huddersfield Town AFC," he wrote.

"Obviously, I've experienced the full raft of emotions over the last few weeks. It's important to recognise the excellent work that has taken place and was ongoing.

"Yes, we were in a Top 6 league position (10 points from Automatic). Yes, we were top scorers in League One. Yes, we were top of the set piece chart. Yes, we were in the quarter-finals of the Football League Trophy.

"3rd in the race for most clean sheets. Proven development of players (Castledine sold for £1 million +, Ashia, Radulovic, etc etc), debuts for Ashia, Vost, Sway, Mrisho, [and] Cup victories against Premier League and Championship opposition.

"Despite all the work and so many things pointing in the right direction, it wasn't enough. Time to reflect. Time to take the learnings.

Grant would go on to thank those who had helped him in his first managerial role, and to those who had reached out since his sacking, before ending the post with: "looking forward to what's next."

Evidently, the 43-year-old is ready to improve and take on another role, perhaps one where the expectations aren't immediately sky-high, as he has clearly shown promise as a manager and, with more time, could guide a club in League One to promotion.

Huddersfield Town's problems haven't fully disappeared since Lee Grant departed

While everything that Grant detailed in his LinkedIn post was factual, there were some clear drawbacks to his time at the club that Huddersfield fans were rightfully frustrated about.

The Terriers may have been in the top six, but as many as seven teams below them had games in hand to climb above them. They were the top scorers in the division, but only four sides had conceded more goals than them, too.

There was clear frustration among the fanbase about his usage of Alfie May, as someone who had created a knack for scoring in the teens and twenties in the third tier wasn't hitting those numbers at Huddersfield, and the lack of usage of Joe Taylor, someone who has gone on to score six in eight on loan at Wigan Athletic since his departure.

And, above all, while the home form was among the best in the league, Huddersfield had won just four times on their travels in League One, which, to many Terriers fans, wasn't good enough.

That being said, the arrival of Liam Manning hasn't all of a sudden meant that those issues have gone away. Huddersfield are still great at home, but poor away, having now lost their last three games on the road, two of which came against sides who started the day in the bottom four.

The Terriers are still sixth, but any one of Reading, Stevenage or Wycombe Wanderers can dump them out of the play-offs with their games in hand. And the points gap between themselves and Lincoln City in second has grown from 10 to 19 over the past month-and-a-half.

Granted, Huddersfield fans weren't on board with Lee Grant's style of play, and the general feeling when he was sacked was positive. However, there was a clear upside to his time at the Accu Stadium, and his flaws haven't exactly all gone since Liam Manning took charge.