Huddersfield Town transfer decision is looking so bizarre - Liam Manning will surely be frustrated | OneFootball

One transfer situation at Huddersfield Town is looking more bizarre by the game, with Liam Manning likely to be gutted...

Huddersfield Town have had Liam Manning in charge of just eight games so far, with somewhat of a mixed start after his arrival late on in the January transfer window.

After winning his first three games in charge after replacing Lee Grant in the dugout, Manning then drew two and lost two before yesterday's 2-1 win against Barnsley in League One.

Prior to Manning joining the club, Huddersfield sanctioned a number of incomings and outgoings under Grant. It's fair to say that the new boss may not have agreed to some of those moves, albeit some of the late moves under his tutelage have paid off.

Ryan Hardie bagged his first goal for the club against Barnsley, with it proving to be the winner. He is part of an attack which includes Alfie May, Bojan Radulovic, and Dion Charles. However, not one of them has scored under Manning thus far.

Hardie is a real coup but other exits may well have not happened had Manning arrived a week or two sooner. One Huddersfield player sealed a loan exit and is thriving in League One with regular minutes.

Joe Taylor's Wigan Athletic form after leaving Huddersfield Town

There was plenty of excitement regarding Joe Taylor's permanent arrival from Luton Town for £3 million, having bagged 10 in 19 games during a loan spell with Lincoln City. However, he did not end 2024/25 well after joining.

Under Grant, he started five times in the league. In fairness to Taylor, he was able to score seven goals in 27 games in all competitions. But he was never the main man in their attack, with Grant not involving him in the matchday squad in five of his final games for the club.

He came on as a substitute in one other and was an unused sub in another, which is why Taylor was allowed to depart Huddersfield on loan to regain some confidence and find regular first-team minutes.

Taylor has joined Wigan Athletic, with Ryan Lowe bringing him in and Gary Caldwell also utilising the 23-year-old after replacing Lowe. He has bagged six in eight league games since moving to the Latics.

That includes a winner against Huddersfield's rivals for a play-off place, Luton Town. It was added to further on Saturday when Taylor scored twice to put his side 2-1 up against Stockport County, who are another of his parent club's promotion rivals.

Taylor now has five in his last four games and only 12 players in League One have scored more than Taylor's 10 now. Per FotMob, only Jack Marriott of Reading has a better goals per 90 ratio than Taylor.

With Taylor scoring with such regularity, it begs the question as to why he was allowed to leave. He has a great record at this level, with 22 goals and four assists in 69 League One games.

That doesn't factor in the number of minutes, which will make that look even more impressive. When you also consider that Manning's strikers have scored just one under him, you wonder if Manning would have sanctioned the exit.

It's almost certain that Manning would have loved Taylor, not just because of his goalscoring exploits. He may well be small in frame and size, but his relentless energy and running into channels gets him into excellent positions.

Having used variants of a 3-4-1-2 and 3-4-3, Manning could have used Taylor in a number of ways in his frontline. Instead, he has no choice but to watch on with Taylor at Wigan.

The silver lining comes via games like Luton, Stockport, Reading, with Taylor showcasing an ability to score against sides around the Terriers. But Huddersfield fans already want Taylor to be a priority next season.

With Plymouth Argyle, Bradford City, Reading, Barnsley, and Stevenage still to come, Manning will have to hope he helps Huddersfield out from afar in the play-off chase - and that he returns to the Accu Stadium in the summer refreshed and ready to play, whatever division that may be in.