"Stung in the past" - Concerns raised after Huddersfield Town capitalise on Ipswich Town call | OneFootball

FLW's Huddersfield Town fan pundit has given his reaction to the signing of former Ipswich Town striker Freddie Ladapo.

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more...

Huddersfield Town have completed the signing of striker Freddie Ladapo on a free transfer after his release by Ipswich Town.

Ladapo joined Ipswich in the summer of 2022, and he scored 21 goals in 53 appearances to help the Tractor Boys to promotion from League One in his first season at Portman Road.

However, Ladapo's game time became limited in the Championship, and after a disappointing loan spell at Charlton Athletic in the second half of last season, he was released by Ipswich last month, which meant that he was able to join Huddersfield as a free agent after the closure of the transfer window.

Ladapo becomes Town's eighth signing of the summer after the arrivals of Lasse Sorensen, Nigel Lonwijk, Herbie Kane, Antony Evans, Joe Hodge, Mickel Miller and Callum Marshall, and he has put pen to paper a two-year contract at the John Smith's Stadium.

Huddersfield head coach Michael Duff expressed his delight at the signing of Ladapo, telling the club's official website: "A player who has been promoted from League One three times already and been in a winning environment at other ambitious clubs, his record speaks for itself and he arrives knowing what it takes to thrive at this level and finish the season where you aspire to."

Huddersfield Town fan pundit on Freddie Ladapo signing

FLW's Huddersfield Town fan pundit Graeme Rayner says that while Ladapo's track record in League One is impressive, he has reservations over the signing of the 31-year-old due to his age.

"It's a hard one to know how to feel about it," Graeme said.

"At first glance, when you look at his stats over his career, they're not massively impressive.

"He's 31, he's not a young player.

"We've been stung in the past with the likes of Oumar Niasse and Yaya Sanogo, neither of whom managed to do anything. "We're very wary of a striker in their 30s who is just coming to get a wage, and a lot of Town fans even criticise Danny Ward now because he was given a good contract by Neil Warnock and he's old now and always injured. "I think Town fans are wary, but you've got to dig a little deeper at his League One stats. "If you take out the half a season loan at Charlton, at Plymouth, Rotherham and Ipswich in his last three full seasons in League One, he's got into the mid-teens for goals. "We need a goalscorer, so if he can come into the side and gets into double figures, how can we be unhappy with that on a free transfer? "Without sitting on the fence, I don't know what to make of it. "My initial reaction was a bit of a groan, but digging deeper, I think it makes a little bit of sense, and I just hope the contract is a sensible one that is weighted towards appearance fees and goal bonuses rather than just picking up a wage. "It's really unclear what to make of it. "Time will tell, and if by Christmas he's not working out, then I'm certain the ownership would dip into the market in January.

"There's still hope that we will get Joe Taylor in the long-term, so this might be a case of giving Ladapo a deal, and if he chips in with a few goals between now and Christmas, job done."

Freddie Ladapo is a gamble worth taking for Huddersfield Town

It is understandable that Graeme has doubts over the signing of Ladapo and his underwhelming loan spell at Charlton last season is a cause for concern.

However, prior to his stint at The Valley, the striker had an outstanding goalscoring record in League One, and having won promotion from the division on three occasions during his career, that experience could be incredibly useful as Huddersfield look to make an immediate Championship return.

As Graeme says, the Terriers may look to reignite their interest in Luton Town striker Taylor in January after his potential loan move to the John Smith's Stadium collapsed late in the window, but there is no guarantee they will be able to secure a deal for the 21-year-old, so it was essential that Duff moved on to other targets to bolster his forward line.