Huddersfield vs Burnley Predictions

• Burnley lost only one of their last four Premier League away games prior to relegation last season.
• The last two clubs to lose the previous season’s Championship play-off final began the next campaign with a defeat (Brentford, Swansea).
• Burnley have avoided defeat in nine of their last 13 meetings with Huddersfield and four of their last six on the road.

Burnley can bounce back if Huddersfield harbour play-off hangover   

The key to Friday’s Championship pipe-opener will be which of the two clubs can put their 2021-22 season disappointments behind them quickest. In Huddersfield, there could be a hangover from Town’s play-off final frustration from last May – and it’s worth noting that both Brentford and Swansea began with defeats weeks after losing at Wembley in the past two seasons – while Burnley must recover from the blow of relegation.

Both clubs are under new management too with Danny Schofield stepping up to take the Terriers’ head coaching role after Carlos Corberan’s departure and Vincent Kompany picking up after a decade of Sean Dyche. There have been key player exits from both squads, understandably more so from the Clarets’ set-up – but Kompany has a pretty good group with which to begin his career in England.

The Belgian has got a couple of seasons of experience under his belt with Anderlecht, where he accumulated a respectable 45% win rate. His ‘lose rate’ is worth a mention too as his former club only lost 18 games of 92 when he was in charge – so less than one in five.

Schofield untested as Terriers’ top dog

Schofield remains somewhat untested as a top dog – he has taken charge of Town twice as a caretaker, losing 4-1 to Millwall at the back end of the 2019-20 season and then for a 1-1 draw at crisis-hit Derby County on the opening weekend of last season when Corberan tested positive for COVID-19.

Neither of those results would encourage many to back the Terriers here – their very good home form last season was more than just a small part down to the Spanish coach who was very tactically astute. Burnley have enough firepower to take advantage of two key Town losses at the back and, if they can keep Sorba Thomas quiet on the right, will be on the right track to getting a result.

The Clarets have two very good, for Championship-level, left-backs in Ian Maatsen and Charlie Taylor, so there’s a chance they can keep the Welsh wizard in check. Burnley lost only one of their last four Premier League away games last term and should be backed to avoid defeat here too. A 1-1 draw looks like a profitable avenue in correct score betting as Town should remain a big threat from set-plays – as they were last season.