Huddersfield Town vs Preston North End; Sky Bet Championship
Huddersfield Town vs Preston North End. Sky Bet Championship.
The Accu StadiumAttendance15,278.
Huddersfield 1-0 Preston: Sepp van den Berg's own goal seals win for Terriers
Report and highlights from the Sky Bet Championship clash between Huddersfield and Preston at the John Smith's Stadium as North End remained pointless after three games of the season as Sepp van den Berg's own goal gifted victory to the Terriers.
Tuesday 17 August 2021 23:37, UK
Huddersfield claimed a 1-0 Championship victory over Preston for their first win of the season as an own goal from on-loan Liverpool defender Sepp van den Berg kept North End bottom of the table.
It was Preston's third-straight league defeat as the unfortunate Dutch teenager diverted the ball past his own goalkeeper with 16 minutes left.
Town had suffered a blow before kick-off - when Matty Pearson felt unwell in the warm-up and was replaced by Tom Lees - and were on the back foot early on.
Preston came close with a second-minute chance when the ball broke to Brad Potts in the box, but his shot was blocked.
The visitors came even closer on their next attack as the lively Daniel Johnson saw a fierce left-footed effort deflected just wide.
Frankie McAvoy's men pushed again after 16 minutes when Ched Evans blasted a good chance over after a Ben Whiteman free-kick, before Town responded by forcing their second corner which Levi Colwill headed wide.
Evans thought he had given Preston the lead after 32 minutes with the dangerous Josh Earl the provider. Earl's driving run down the left exposed the home defence and Evans reacted quickest to the pull back but his low effort was scrambled off the line by Naby Sarr.
Preston continued to press for the breakthrough as Whiteman stung goalkeeper Lee Nicholls' palms from the edge of the box.
Huddersfield boss Carlos Corberan threw on former Manchester United and Sunderland striker Fraizer Campbell for Danny Ward at half-time and the home side improved as an attacking threat.
Josh Koroma got behind the Preston defence just after the hour mark but there was nobody on hand to turn in his inviting ball from the left.
The goal came after 74 minutes, with Koroma again the driving force. His through-ball sent substitute Duane Holmes scampering through, and Van Den Berg's untimely intervention saw the ball passed beyond goalkeeper Daniel Iversen and into the bottom corner.
The home side could have added a second as they flourished following the breakthrough. Sorba Thomas tied the Preston defence in knots down the left but his shot rattled back off the far post.
And as the visitors committed men forward in search of an equaliser, they left big gaps at the back.
The impressive Koroma drove forward late on but dragged his shot just wide as the Terriers saw the game out to clinch their first three points of the season and leave Preston with nothing to show from their first three games.
What the managers said...
Huddersfield's Carlos Corberan: "After that defeat to Fulham we wanted to react because sometimes these defeats can increase doubts in the players. For me today we needed to play well and compete well, win challenges and play the game without any mistakes. We managed the ball well in some moments and created some good chances after the goal, and the clean sheet was pleasing.
"Naby Sarr had a fantastic game and won many challenges and played with concentration and focus and no mistakes. I don't care it was an own goal, it was three points. We played 3-5-2 and it is a necessary option to attack. We decided to use this and coped well with the options we have. I think when you are in professional football you have pressure to win, but we like that. The sooner we get three points the better. We suffered a lot with many defeats at the end of last season."
Preston's Frankie McAvoy: "There were some pleasing bits so we just need to dust ourselves down and look forward to Saturday. The fans are massive, we are stronger together. They were fantastic and I'm just so disappointed we are sending them home with nothing, as are the players.
"I don't think anybody could have faulted us tonight, we gave everything we could to try and win the game. On another day you might have got a more positive result. We just need to keep believing it will turn for us and when it does, we need to kick on with some momentum."
