What new-look Peterborough United need to turn a shambolic season on its head

Posh are set to hand full debuts to three summer transfer window signings for their tough encounter at League One title fancies Huddersfield Town on Saturday.

Goalkeeper Alex Bass will start for the first time since his arrival from Notts County and he’s likely to be joined by on-loan Wrexham defenders Tom O’Connor and Jacob Mendy who moved to Posh on deadline day.

They could join recent recruits Matthew Garbett, former Huddersfield centre-back Tom Lees, and forwards Harry Leonard and Jimmy-Jay Morgan in a starting line-up virtually unrecognisable from the opening day of the campaign.

Posh have so far lost 7 of 8 competitive fixtures this season to set the alarm bells ringing among a frustrated fanbase.

"A lot of players have come in,” Posh boss Darren Ferguson said. “ I’ve essentially had to build a completely new team in 15 months and this is only the start of it. We tried last season and got the recruitment wrong, but I feel we now have a strong squad once everyone is fit.

"It might take time to get the team up and running with how I want them to play, but I also realise we need to win games while that is happening. We need to play with fight, desire and personality and start to change the narrative of our season.

"I honestly feel we are one win away from turning this season right around. We needed a win in this fixture last season and we got it, and we immediately went on a run afterwards.

"The defenders we have brought in give us extra experience and quality, but they also bring a winning mentality which we needed. We’ve had a losing feeling for too long now going back into last season and, for young players in particular, that can be hard to shake off. What I have now is a lot of flexibility in the squad and the opportunity to dip the younger ones in and out of the team. Some still look drained from last season.

"Obviously it’s a tough game tomorrow, it always will be when you take on Huddersfield in a League One fixture. You would imagine they would be up there at the end. They’ve gone strong with their recruitment and added some very good players since the end of last season, but it’s possible to completely turn our start around. I gave the players a long list of teams who have suffered terrible starts and still gone on to have good seasons.

"Just look at Orient at our level. They lost their first four League One games last season and ended up in the play-off final. It was important to show the players stuff like that.”

Ferguson is expected to turn to wing-backs and three centre-backs at Huddersfield. That will enable him to field two strikers in an attempt to improve a tally of 2 goals in 6 League One matches.

"The style of play won’t change in terms of how we want to play,” Ferguson insisted. “But we have now recruited for back three and a back four. We could play both formations in the same game depending on whether we are in or out of possession. I like the wing-back formation and we often play it anyway when in possession.

"What we did have to do to make it it work is get more strikers which we have now done. The young forwards we have signed are ready to go. They won’t need patience because they are already good players. They bring a great attitude as well as plenty of quality.”

Winger Declan Frith remains sidelined by a knee injury, while central defender David Okagbue and on-loan goalkeeper Vicente Reyes are away on international duty. Centre-back Oscar Wallin remains away from the club dealing with a personal issue.