Huddersfield Town capitalised on Man City player decision before even Aaron Mooy | OneFootball

Tommy Smith became a Terriers legend after being on City's books as a youngster

Huddersfield Town ply their trade in League One nowadays, but were once a Premier League club for two seasons, as some modern-day legends led the Terriers into the top-flight for the first time since the early 1970s.

David Wagner was boss at the John Smith's Stadium as Huddersfield won promotion to the top-flight through the play-offs, with the likes of Jonathan Hogg, Michael Hefele, Christopher Schindler and Aaron Mooy all playing huge parts in the triumph.

Australian international Mooy was the Terriers' key man in the middle of the park, after he was signed from Manchester City in 2016 to bolster Wagner's ranks, but he was not the only one that had been on the Citizens books and then gone on to become a crucial part of the Huddersfield team which won that historic promotion at Wembley in 2017.

Right-back Tommy Smith joined the Terriers in 2012 after being with City as a youngster, and went on to become a mainstay on the right of defence in the second-tier, before he captained the club as they made it into the top-flight under Wagner.

Smith still plays in the Championship to this day, at Middlesbrough, but is mostly remembered for his spell in West Yorkshire which saw him become a cult-hero among Huddersfield fans, yet his historic time at the club may not have even happened had City not made the decision to release him as a 19-year-old.

Tommy Smith became a key man in his seven years at Huddersfield

Warrington-born Smith joined City's youth ranks as an 11-year-old, after initially being with Tranmere Rovers, but suffered numerous serious injuries that hampered his development in the Blues' academy, including a broken leg in 2010.

His persistent troubles led him to agree with City to cancel his contract six months early in January 2012, and he spent time at local non-league team Helsby before being picked up by the Terriers later that year, and initially appeared in their under-21 side.

Smith's first-team debut for Huddersfield came at the start of 2013, and he soon forged his way as a bit-part player in the Championship, before becoming a more permanent fixture in the starting eleven in the 2014/15 campaign.

Initially a centre-back as he came through the ranks, Smith soon moved across to become a right-back more often than not, and was insistent that his decision to leave City was the right one, and not a "gamble," after people around him had told him he had made the wrong decision at the time.

Smith's big City decision was certainly vindicated in the years that followed, as he featured 42 times in the 2016/17 campaign as Town sprung a huge surprise under German boss Wagner, and was named captain throughout the season, including in all three play-off ties, which culminated with a historic penalty shootout win over Reading at Wembley in May 2017.

He played 24 times in his first season in the Premier League, while competing for his place with Florent Hadergonaj, as the Terriers achieved a miraculous survival in the top-flight, but was not as influential in their fateful 2018/19 campaign, with just 14 league appearances as the club was relegated with only 16 points on the board.

Smith soon departed the John Smith's Stadium that summer to join fellow second-tier outfit Stoke City, for a reported fee of around £4 million.

While it was not the end that he would have wanted at Huddersfield, he is still regarded as one of the best right-backs in the club's modern history, and a real success story, given the Terriers' circumstances when he first joined, compared to what they achieved when he was there.

Tommy Smith's recent woes could lead him back to Huddersfield Town in the future

Since leaving West Yorkshire, Smith has mostly been as reliable as ever in the Championship at right-back, and was first-choice at Stoke for three seasons before he moved on once again to join Middlesbrough in 2022, who he is contracted to, to this day.

He has found it tougher at the Riverside Stadium, particularly since turning 30-years-old, to hold down a place in the starting eleven, and injury troubles have massively blighted his last 18 months with Boro.

Smith was a regular in his first season at the club, as Michael Carrick led his side to fourth place and a play-off defeat to Coventry City, and started last season in similar form, before a ruptured achilles suffered in October saw him miss the remainder of the season.

Over a year on, the now-32-year-old is yet to make his comeback with Boro, and has seen the likes of Anfernee Dijksteel and Luke Ayling impress as they battle for a starting berth at right-back in recent months.

Smith is out of contract with Middlesbrough next summer, and will be 33 by then, so it is certainly not beyond the realms of possibility that he could explore a potential return to the John Smith's Stadium as his career begins to wind down, especially if Huddersfield win promotion back to the second-tier and look to bring in some much-needed Championship experience.