"Very rarely..." - Pundit issues verdict on Huddersfield Town's Andre Breitenreiter, Jon Worthington decision | OneFootball

Highlights

Huddersfield Town confirmed the appointment of André Breitenreiter earlier this week.

The German has arrived as the long-term replacement for Darren Moore, becoming the third permanent manager of the Terriers this season.

Interim manager Jon Worthington helped the team’s position in the table, earning six points from a possible nine during his reign as caretaker. This led to some questions over whether he should be given the permanent position in the dugout, but the Championship side instead opted for Breitenreiter.

Breitenreiter has previous experience in German and Swiss football, with his most recent position coming with Bundesliga side Hoffenheim.

Carlton Palmer believes that Huddersfield made the right decision in committing to picking a fresh face as their next permanent manager.

While Worthington was bringing in good results, the 58-year-old has claimed that caretaker managers rarely work out as permanent appointments, so bringing someone of Breitenreiter’s experience in will likely prove the wiser long-term call.

“Huddersfield Town have appointed their new manager, André Breitenreiter,” Palmer told Football League World.

“He arrives in England looking to replicate the success he enjoyed in the dugouts in Germany and Switzerland.

“He’s twice won promotion to the German Bundesliga, and he’s also won the Swiss Super League in 2022.

“There were talks of should Jon Worthington be in the conversation for the Huddersfield Town job.

“Yes, he managed to pick up a couple of results.

“But, again, when you are a caretaker manager you’re under no pressure and when you do give somebody a job when they’ve been caretaker manager, very rarely does that turn out to be successful.

“Huddersfield have taken their time, and they’ve appointed André Breitenreiter, and they’ll be looking to continue where Worthington has left off.

“He’s got that feel-good factor for them, and they’ve picked up results, and hopefully they can stay in the league and kick-on for next season.”

Huddersfield are currently 20th in the Championship table, having won two of their last three league games.

The Terriers are five points clear of the relegation zone, with Breitenreiter being tasked with ensuring their safety in the division for another year.

Breitenreiter’s first game in charge won't come this weekend, with Worthington set to oversee the upcoming clash against Hull City on Saturday before the German takes the reins next week.

The 50-year-old will be aiming to get off to a positive start, with 14 games remaining in the league season.

Huddersfield stick to the plan

It would have been easy to rip up their plans to appoint a long-term successor to Moore by sticking with Worthington. Many clubs have got stuck in that trap of hiring someone off the back of a couple of good results, and very few end up in a better place in the long-term.

By appointing Breitenreiter, Huddersfield are sticking to the plan by looking to build something over time.

While Worthington did a very good job over three games, that is not enough to justify becoming a full-time manager of a Championship side.