This shortcoming is holding Huddersfield Town player back from a Premier League move: View | OneFootball

In a season that has barely offered any joy at the John Smith’s Stadium, the performances of Jack Rudoni will have offered some respite for Huddersfield Town fans during their side’s fight against relegation.

The Terriers find themselves lodged in the Championship drop zone with eight games remaining, with Birmingham City sitting a place above in safety thanks to a superior goal difference.

When you are fighting at the bottom of the league, every goal can be vital, whether it is earning your side some valuable points or just reducing the arrears, they can all prove to be pivotal when the season comes to an end.

And for all his plaudits, Rudoni is just a bit off the mark when it comes to finding the net, which could ultimately be the difference between him flourishing in the second tier and getting a chance of dining at the top table.

Jack Rudoni career stats: AFC Wimbledon, Huddersfield Town

Rudoni started to make a name for himself after coming through the ranks at AFC Wimbledon, where his weaving runs from the flanks continued to cause mayhem in League One, as he netted 16 times over the course of two seasons for the Dons, as well as laying on six goals for his colleagues.

12 of those strikes came in the 2021/22 campaign as he really began to find his feet for his boyhood club, and although it couldn’t stop the Wombles from dropping down to League Two, he got himself a move to Yorkshire as a result of his endeavours.

The move - which is said to be a club-record fee received for the phoenix club - gave the 23-year-old the chance to shine on a bigger stage, and he proved himself to be a valued performer for the Terriers; appearing in every single game of the previous campaign.

Although his effervescent performances continued to catch the eye, the goals have since dried up for Rudoni, with just two strikes finding the back of the net in his first season in the second tier, before getting on the scoresheet five times in the current campaign.

Both seasons have seen the midfielder underperform his xG numbers by more than 2.0 goals, with his chances during this season culminating to a total of 7.3, meaning his side have potentially lost out on a number of points because of his inability to find the target.

Not only that, but it is only two goals that is keeping the Terriers in the relegation zone at the minute, so those figures look all the more vital as the season comes to a close, with even late consolation strikes making all the difference to the final standings.

The underlying numbers show that the former AFC Wimbledon man is never shy in having a dig from distance, with an average shot coming 17.9 yards from goal, while his average shots per game has risen incrementally from 1.38 to 2.15 since last season.

Jack Rudoni Premier League interest

Daily Mirror journalist Darren Witcoop reported that Premier League clubs were interested in the wide man over the January transfer window, but even the player himself knows he has to add more goals to his game.

He told Sky Sports: “I set myself the highest of standards, and I want to achieve everything in football, everything I can, and play at the highest level.

“I completely believe I can, and I’ll just keep working hard every single day to try and improve and better myself as a player and person, and I believe that will eventually take me to where I need to get to.

“Even this year, I look back and I could probably have had 15 goals by now. That’s something that I’m constantly working on on the training pitch, and mentally as well behind the scenes, working on composure and visualising and stuff like that, to help me get more goals.”

With a contract that runs until June 2026 at the John Smith’s Stadium, Terriers fans can rest assured that one of their prized assets won’t be moving on for pittance in the coming years, and if he turns more of his chances into goals they could easily be asking for an eight-figure fee for their forward.

You only have to look at the likes of Morgan Whittaker and Jack Clarke to see what a goal-getting midfield talent is worth these days, with both players reportedly being touted at over £10 million.

That is the main difference between Rudoni and the cream of the crop at the minute, but once he gets that composure in front of goal, there will be plenty of teams higher up the football pyramid willing to take a chance on him.