Midfielder expecting tough test against former team
Jonathan Hogg knows better than anyone that Saturday’s clash with Watford will be one of Town’s toughest to date.
The former Aston Villa midfielder played 43 times for the Hornets last season as Gianfranco Zola’s men reached the Play-Off Final.
“It was a brilliant team to play in with a lot of young talent, that I think caught teams by surprise,” he said. “To get to the Final was a fantastic achievement, but to fall at the final hurdle was very disappointing."
Hogg played a key role in one of the Championship’s most dramatic games last season when Watford scored a last minute winner to beat Leicester in the Play-Off semi-final: “It was an unbelievable match; we were one goal behind after the first leg and just went for it! They parked the bus, but we got through and to set Troy (Deeney) up for the winner is one of my career highlights.”
Former West Ham Manager Zola took charge at Watford ahead of last season and is a man that Hogg holds a lot of respect for.
“He instilled confidence in all of his players,” the 24 year-old told htafc.com. “He just wanted us to trust each other; he was more focused on the attacking side of things and he tried to coach people the way that he played. I learned a lot from him and he was a fantastic man to play under; he was very positive and I think that showed on the pitch.
“They scored a lot of goals away from home last season and have continued that trend this term,” he added. “They are one of the best attacking outfits in the division and it will be tough for us to deal with them. We need to be positive, get in their faces and not let them settle and play their game.”
The Terriers go into Saturday’s match on the back of three draws and haven’t been beaten in the league since before the last international break.
“The unbeaten run that we are on has given the lads a lot of confidence ahead of Saturday’s game. We are enjoying our football and have picked up some decent results.”
“We are improving on different bits of our game each week,” Hogg continued. “At Middlesbrough on Tuesday we should have pushed on for a second, but instead we sat back and allowed them to attack us. It was still a good point, though, and a good away performance.”
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