It's not uncommon for certain types of player to go underrated in football. If you look at all of the individual prizes handed out, more often than not, it's a forward or an attacking midfield player awarded, with defensive minded footballers and goalkeepers especially looked over time and time again, with scoring goals obviously the sexiest aspect of the sport.

As a part of that, one player at Town who isn't given the praise he deserves is Jonathan Hogg, who has been a central figure in everything positive Huddersfield have done under David Wagner, and continues to be a vital part of the side. Somewhat undervalued given the role he does, the majority of attention is given to Aaron Mooy, who is far more eye catching on the ball, and gets more in the way of goals and assists, which is obviously easier to value and quantify than 'moves stopped'.

Huddersfield Town's Jonathan Hogg challenges Swansea City's Jordan Ayew last weekend.
Huddersfield Town's Jonathan Hogg challenges Swansea City's Jordan Ayew last weekend.

In truth, Hogg has given Mooy the platform on which to play, doing the majority of the dirty work and feeding his midfield partner the ball - an unselfish and essential part of what makes Huddersfield tick. Reminiscent of how Scott Parker sacrificed his own headlines at Tottenham in order to give Luka Modric as much of the football as possible, the relationship between Hogg and Mooy isn't a million miles away from that, and certainly built on the same principles. To use an analogy, somebody like Aaron Mooy would be the new iPhone of the Town team: shiny, full of features and desired by many. Hogg, in turn, is the person who built it - you may not think about them or what they do, but without their work, there's no new iPhone.

Under a coach like David Wagner, who's all about structure and controlled chaos, Hogg is an ideal foundation to build upon. A shield for his defence, he will run his blood to water breaking up opposition moves, pressing players who need to have their influence limited and putting his head where others wouldn't dare to put their boot. For a team like Town to win, and flourish in the manner the have done recently, they need those marginal gains, and a player as committed to the cause as Hogg helps tip that balance in their favour, which makes him a truly priceless commodity.

Pic by Arfa / Griffiths Photographers Sky Bet Championship Bristol City v Huddersfield Town Ashton Gate 17-03-2017 Jonathan Hogg receives medical attention

Before the arrival of Wagner, though, Hogg lacked that focus, and his contribution was worse off for it. A more box-to-box player, while he worked hard, he was just so-so in number of different areas, rather than being excellent in one. Now, with a defined role and clear instruction of what he's supposed to do and what's expected of him, Hogg has been able to concentrate his energy and become all the better as a result. Alongside the improvement shown by Tommy Smith under Wagner, it's one of the German-American coach's finest pieces of man management, making what appeared to be a player who may be replaced in to a cornerstone of what would go on to become his first choice and strongest side.

On top of that, though, there are several intangibles. His leadership, for one, is indispensable. Not only is he constantly talking and backing up his team, he leads by example and sets the tone for both the attitude on and off the field - one of his slide tackles timed to perfection gets the crowd on its feet and singing in the same manner a goal would, and that has been central to Huddersfield's home form. While some did wonder whether or not Danny Williams would come in and nick his jumper, the American international will have to prove he's able to fill Hogg's shoes in every way before that change becomes even close to being a possibility long term.

Jonathan Hogg in action for Huddersfield Town against Manchester United last weekend.
Jonathan Hogg in action for Huddersfield Town against Manchester United last weekend.

Having played a full forty games across 2016/17, it's remarkable how durable he proved to be given his style of play, even with injuries forcing him to miss the odd game here and there. It's an example of his character that when a suspected fracture in his neck wasn't as bad as first feared - which, if you cast your mind back, was as a potential career ender - he worked his way back to full fitness within a matter of weeks, and reintegrated himself in to the heart of the side with minimal fuss or fanfare. In his prime at 28-years-old, Town can look forward to having Hogg at this level for some time, as he doesn't strike you as being the type of character to take his foot off the gas, even having achieved what he has.

David Wagner is a manager who evaluates and then elevates, and Jonathan Hogg is a perfect example of that, but the player himself had to be willing to let certain aspects of his game go and trust in his manager to allow other facets to flourish - without that understanding and partnership, Huddersfield may not be where they are today. That, of course, has carried on in to this season, and he's proving just and influential and essential in the Premier League as he was the Championship, which takes some doing. While he may not be the type to catch too many headlines or man of the match awards, what he does allows those who are to play their game with the confidence they do. He does less so that others can do more - if that doesn't deserve highlighting, I'm not sure what does.

You can follow Raj Bains on Twitter over on @BainsXIII , and his Huddersfield Town book Underdog is being published later in 2017. It is available to order now, with the opportunity to have the name of your choice printed in a fans list at the back of the book. Please visit www.gnbooks.co.uk or call 01274 735056.