There's no doubt Dean Whitehead will be a big loss to Huddersfield Town as he works his way back to fitness following a knee injury.
The former Middlesbrough man is out for six to eight weeks after being forced off during Saturday’s 2-0 Championship win at Birmingham City.
Opta stats show he has won 76% of his tackles, 54% of his aerial duels and made 60 interceptions.
He has averaged 66 passes a match with an accuracy of 85%, and created nine chances.
The close-season midfield recruit (he also played as a right-back for Boro) has featured more than any other Town player this season.
He has failed to start just one match, the 2-2 draw at Reading, when he was suspended after reaching five bookings.
In the Championship, Whitehead has played a total of 1,568 minutes, most of them effective.
The 33-year-old ex-Oxford United, Sunderland and Stoke City player was former manager Chris Powell’s first summer signing.
His move came just a month after he appeared in the Championship play-off final at Wembley (Middlesbrough lost 2-0 to Norwich City).
Powell was attracted not just by his experience (it’s now 576 career appearances), tackling and passing skills, but also his leadership qualities.
Whitehead was installed as stand-in skipper when Mark Hudson was out injured.
And he led the way to the first two wins of the season, over Charlton Athletic and Bolton Wanderers.
He has adapted well to the demands of David Wagner’s ‘full-throttle’ tactics and 4-2-3-1 formation.
Whitehead is used to the ‘European’ approach after playing under Spaniard Aitor Karanka at Boro.
Under German Wagner, he has been one of the two deep-lying midfielders, partnering Wales international Emyr Huws.
Whitehead sometimes drops deeper still, effectively becoming an extra centre-back between skipper Mark Hudson and Martin Cranie.
