Liam Manning may have sleepless nights at Huddersfield Town - Plymouth Argyle are coming | OneFootball

Huddersfield Town currently occupy the final League One play-off spot, but they may be looking nervously over their shoulders at Plymouth Argyle.

Huddersfield Town will be hoping to win promotion to the Championship this season under new head coach Liam Manning.

After a disappointing 10th-placed finish last season, Huddersfield are currently in their second consecutive year in League One, and they will be hoping to escape the third tier this time around.

The Terriers handed Lee Grant his first managerial role this summer, and he was given strong backing in the transfer market by owner Kevin Nagle as 14 new signings arrived at the Accu Stadium, including the likes of Ryan Ledson, Marcus Harness and Alfie May.

Town were widely tipped to win the title after their eye-catching summer business, but they struggled to live up to that billing in the first half of the season, and Grant came under pressure from supporters amid his side's inconsistent form.

Despite being sixth in the table at the time, Huddersfield parted company with Grant last month following a four-game winless run, and just a few days later, they appointed former Bristol City and Norwich City boss Manning as his replacement.

Liam Manning appointment has boosted Huddersfield Town promotion hopes

Manning had an underwhelming 17-game spell at Norwich earlier in the campaign before being sacked in November, but he did lead Bristol City to the Championship play-offs last season, and he has certainly made a big impact at Huddersfield.

The 40-year-old won his first three games in charge against Bradford City, Luton Town and Peterborough United to breathe new life into the Terriers' faltering promotion push, and while away defeats to Stevenage and Doncaster Rovers stalled that momentum slightly, the improvement in his side in recent weeks is clear.

While Manning only arrived in the latter stages of the January transfer window, he was able to land one significant signing in the form of Wrexham striker Ryan Hardie, who was a prolific goalscorer during his previous spell in League One with Plymouth Argyle.

The Terriers are the third-highest scorers in the division behind Cardiff City and Lincoln City, but the addition of a proven number nine like Hardie could make the difference in their promotion push, and he has already shown his worth by netting the winner in the 2-1 victory over Barnsley on Saturday.

Having had MK Dons and Oxford United challenging at the top of the table during his spells at those respective clubs, Manning has a strong track record in the third tier, but he will be hoping to achieve the promotion that has been elusive in his managerial career so far with Town this season.

Huddersfield currently occupy the final play-off spot, and they are four points clear of seventh-placed Reading, but there are a host of teams queuing up to capitalise on any slip-ups from Manning's men, including Plymouth.

Plymouth Argyle may be Huddersfield Town's biggest League One play-off threat

It is fair to say that it has been a turbulent first season back in League One for Plymouth following their relegation from the Championship.

After a nightmare first half of the season, the Pilgrims sat in the relegation zone as recently as early January, and many supporters were calling for head coach Tom Cleverley to be sacked, but the club stuck with the former Manchester United midfielder.

Argyle's faith in Cleverley has certainly been rewarded as his side have produced a stunning run of form since the turn of the year, and they have won their last three league games, including a 5-2 demolition of leaders Cardiff at Home Park on Saturday.

While Plymouth are still only 11th in the table and six points behind Huddersfield, they have a game in hand on the Terriers, and with belief growing in Devon that a late promotion charge could be on the cards, that gap could narrow further over the coming weeks.

It is not only the Pilgrims that Town need to keep an eye on, with Reading, Stevenage and Wycombe Wanderers also closing in on them, and the manager of the latter, Michael Duff, will need no extra motivation to knock his former club out of the top six after his harsh sacking last March.

Despite their inconsistent form, Luton Town should not be discounted from the play-off equation just yet, with their squad boasting plenty of quality, while resurgent Peterborough United may fancy their chances of forcing their way into the promotion picture as their impressive turnaround under Luke Williams continues.

After their own recent improvement under Manning, Huddersfield may be keen to look up the table rather than down, and the three sides above them, Stockport County, Bradford City and Bolton Wanderers, have all shown signs of vulnerability of late.

However, with the likes of Plymouth building strong momentum below them, the Terriers' priority must be cementing their play-off place and avoiding a repeat of the drop-off seen in the final stages of last season.