New Huddersfield boss Michael Duff insists getting out of League One will not be easy and warned his players they cannot afford “entitlement” next season.
Duff took charge at the John Smith’s Stadium following the Terriers’ relegation from the Championship under Andre Breitenreiter, who departed by mutual consent.
The 46-year-old guided Barnsley to the play-off final last year before leaving for Swansea, but he was sacked after less than six months in the hot seat at the Welsh club.
Duff highlighted Sunderland and Derby as recent examples of how difficult it can be to get back into the second tier following relegation.
“In the Championship, I’d imagine there would be 18 teams thinking they can get in the play-offs at the start of the season,” he told Yorkshire Live.
“It’s not like that in this league, but there will still be 10 teams thinking they can get in the top six and there will always be a surprise package, because there always is.
“It’s making sure the players are aware that just because we play in a big stadium, and it will be in front of a big crowd, there’s no entitlement. They will get told that because I’ve seen it.
“It took Sunderland two or three years, it took Derby a couple of years. You look at what Ipswich have just done, but they didn’t get relegated and bounce straight back. They needed that reset, and it doesn’t instantly mean ‘Right, you’re going to win the league next year’.
“Make no mistake, that is what we want to do but it doesn’t just happen. It’s constant work, constant application and building the incremental things to achieve the ultimate success. Talk is cheap so we need to make sure that we are ready to implement all those things.”
Duff believes physicality is one of the main challenges in League One and says his players must be strong, both physically and mentally.
“All my teams have been built on that they’re fit, strong and organised. That is what they need to understand,” he added.
“Yes, you want to play attacking football and you want to get in people’s faces but the foundations are fit, strong and organised.
“They better come in fit and they will, they will be fit by the end of pre-season. That is not just physically fit, I mean mentally fit. Obviously, with the strength and conditioning, all that comes with being mentally strong and then organised.”
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