Another year, another change of boss!

Now David Wagner is the man charged with making Huddersfield Town a Championship challenger – as head coach rather than manager.

Chris Powell’s successor, a German who won the old UEFA Cup with Schalke and played internationally for the USA as a striker, took over on November 5.

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He is assisted by Christoph Buhler, his former right-hand man at Borussia Dortmund’s reserve team, and ex-Liverpool player and coach Mike Marsh.

So far his record reads three wins (the same number earned under Powell this season), a draw and four defeats.

Wagner’s appointment came a day after the sacking of Powell.

Huddersfield Town press conference for new Head Coach, David Wagner.

The ex-Charlton Athletic chief and England left-back had been at Town since September 2014.

He led the club to a final position of 16th in the second tier last season, their highest since the 1999-2000 campaign, when Steve Bruce was at the helm.

Powell then had to cope with the loss of key players Conor Coady, keeper Alex Smithies and Jacob Butterfield to divisional rivals Wolves, Queens Park Rangers and Derby County respectively.

He departed less than 24 hours after a 2-2 draw at Reading and with Town 18th in the table.

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That was the position in which they started 2015 and where they found themselves in the immediate aftermath of Monday’s 1-1 draw at QPR.

Chairman Dean Hoyle later said the decision to dispense with Powell’s services wasn’t entirely down to results.

“I think Chris did okay with what he had at his disposal, but I felt we were treading water as a club and needed a fresh approach,” he explained.

“And we listened to supporters who said they weren’t happy with what they saw as a negative brand of football.

“To me, there was a bigger risk in sticking than moving.

“Chris is a good man and while he didn’t agree with our decision, he took it on the chin and we parted amicably.”

Huddersfield Town manager Chris Powell before the game against Nottingham Forest.
Huddersfield Town manager Chris Powell before the game against Nottingham Forest.

Wagner, 44, has brought new training methods and tactics to Town.

His ‘full-throttle’ pressing football, which puts the emphasis on keeping possession and when it is lost, winning the ball back as quickly as possible, demands high fitness levels and is similar to that played at Liverpool, where Wagner’s close friend and former Dortmund colleague Jurgen Klopp is in charge.

“We needed something different, a way of getting the absolute best out of the squad,” added Hoyle, who works closely with chief executive Nigel Clibbens and football operations chief Stuart Webber.

“We don’t just want safety but to push on and to excite our supporters.

“We were looking for a new style of organisation, fitness and play.

“David was open to a move to England and we had a close look at the Dortmund model and were impressed with what we saw. Things developed from there.”

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For the record, Town’s overall league record in 2015 was played 46, won 12, drew 16, lost 18, goals for 55, goals against 69.

They suffered home defeats in both the FA Cup (1-0 to Reading in round three) and Capital One (2-1 to Notts County in round one).

Among the incoming players were Ishmael Miller, Dean Whitehead, Jason Davidson, Kyle Dempsey and Martin Cranie, and loanees Emyr Huws, Jamie Paterson, Muzzy Carayol, Jed Steer and Ben Chilwell.

As well as Coady, Smithies and Butterfield, outgoings included Danny Ward, Lee Peltier, Paul Dixon, Jake Carroll, Danny Carr, Martin Paterson, Anthony Gerrard, Jon Stead and Oscar Gobern.