Huddersfield Town have exercised an option to extend winger Cameron Ashia’s contract, as they prepare for a battle to keep one of their prized assets.
Despite an extremely difficult season for the Terriers, who were consigned to another campaign in League One, Ashia has been a rare bright spark.
And following reported interest from the Championship and Scottish giants Celtic earlier this year, the West Yorkshire outfit have protected their best interests with this agreement.
Despite limited minutes in the third-tier, 644 to be precise, the 21-year-old managed three goals and three assists in his breakthrough season in English football. After a year as a scholar at Derby County, Ashia was given a second chance by the Terriers in April 2024, signing for their ‘B’ team. Later that year, he was given first-team exposure in the EFL Trophy, playing over an hour in a narrow defeat to Yorkshire rivals Doncaster Rovers.
After appearing in the matchday squad for the first time in the league, Ashia joined Torquay United on loan. However, he returned to West Yorkshire with no minutes under his belt. Nevertheless, he put that spell firmly behind him by bagging against Reading in just his second league game last August. That made it two goals in as many matches, after scoring against Leicester City in the League Cup earlier that week.
Ashia was mainly limited to appearances off the bench, with only four league starts in the 25/26 campaign. That perhaps suited him better, though he did grab assists in his first two appearances from the off against AFC Wimbledon and Exeter City. Injury cut short his campaign, but not before seasoned second-tier outfits Bristol City and Preston North End were the latest teams to be linked with the Wandsworth-born attacker.
Fox Soccer Academy announced he had signed a two-year contract extension last summer. However, Huddersfield’s retained list appears to contradict that statement, with the club revealing they had taken up an option to extend his contract into next season. Regardless of this discrepancy, it puts the Terriers in a strong position to be able to demand a higher price for the bright winger.
Headlines From Huddersfield Town’s Retained List
A clear-out of players may have been expected from Huddersfield, as they prepare for a third successive League One campaign after missing out on promotion. However, Mickel Miller and Neo Eccleston were the only two first-team players to depart, with the majority of the Terriers squad still under contract.
Even at that, the above-mentioned pair have hardly featured during their disappointing league season. Miller made 37 appearances across two injury-hit years in West Yorkshire, while Eccleston was limited to just three third-tier outings in the most recent campaign. Cameron Humphreys and Ryan Hardie are among the loanees who have returned to their parent clubs.
Former Imps Lasse Sorensen and Seán Roughan, who were in the top six for minutes played this season, are contracted beyond the summer. Joe Taylor is set for an interesting transfer window, after a prolific loan at Wigan Athletic showed the Terriers exactly what they’ve been missing this campaign. He is a player certain to attract plenty of interest in the coming months.
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