Nahki Wells made a significant impact at Huddersfield Town, playing a pivotal role in their Championship success and subsequent promotion to the Premier League. However, his move to Burnley didn’t yield the expected results, and he found success during loan spells at Queens Park Rangers instead. Despite these ups and downs, Wells has become a legend in the Football League, showcasing his exceptional goal-scoring abilities at Bristol City.
Huddersfield Town took a chance on Nahki Wells when they signed him from League One club Bradford City in January 2014. Fans were pleasantly surprised by his immediate impact at the John Smith’s Stadium.
Wells initially joined Huddersfield Town on an emergency loan deal during the 2013-14 season before making a permanent transfer for a reported club record fee. Mark Robins, the manager at the time, praised Wells’ impressive goal-scoring record at Bradford City, expressing confidence in his ability to step up to the Championship level.
Before joining Huddersfield, Wells had already showcased his talent with 14 goals and two assists in just 19 league appearances for Bradford City. His time at Valley Parade saw him score 53 goals and provide 11 assists, including key contributions in their successful League Two Play-off campaign and their memorable EFL Cup run in the 2012/13 season.
Nahki Wells was a top signing for Huddersfield Town
In his first half-season in the Championship, he added six more goals and two assists. The striker thrived in his first two full seasons at Huddersfield, finishing as their top goalscorer each time with 14 goals in his first season and 18 goals in his second. His contributions were instrumental in helping the team avoid relegation in both campaigns.
| Nahki Wells’ Huddersfield Town Statistics (From Transfermarkt) | |||
| Season | Appearances | Goals | Assists |
| 2016/17 | 47 | 10 | 3 |
| 2015/16 | 47 | 18 | 4 |
| 2014/15 | 37 | 14 | 4 |
| 2013/14 | 22 | 7 | 1 |
Wells’ biggest success was achieved in his final season at John Smith’s Stadium when he scored ten goals and made three assists as David Wagner’s side made the Championship play-offs for the first ever time.
He played every minute of the 2016/17 Championship playoffs, guiding his team through penalty shootouts against Sheffield Wednesday and Reading to secure their first-ever promotion to the Premier League.
Following this success, the striker moved to Premier League side Burnley for £5 million in the 2017/18 season, earning Huddersfield an unexpected profit of around £3.7 million as his contract was set to expire soon.
With this windfall, Huddersfield invested in signing Steve Mounié from Montpellier for a reported club-record fee of £11 million. Despite Mounié’s promising debut with a brace against Crystal Palace in a successful season for Huddersfield, he couldn’t quite replicate the impact Wells had on the John Smith’s Stadium crowd.
Wells’ Burnley move was a bust
Wells initially struggled to find his place in Sean Dyche’s Burnley squad, making just ten appearances before moving on to Queens Park Rangers on loan. There, he found success, playing 72 games over two seasons and contributing 24 goals and ten assists.
In January 2020, at the age of 29, Wells made a permanent transfer to Bristol City, where he has since made nearly 200 appearances. His impressive career spans over 400 games in the EFL, earning him a status as a Football League legend.
Wells’ notable goal-scoring prowess at QPR, Bradford, Huddersfield, and Bristol City has seen him score over 100 goals in the EFL. Despite being 33, he continues to perform at a high level, particularly in the south-west.
However, it’s his contributions in the north of England that will be cherished most, having played a key role in Bradford’s promotion to League One and Huddersfield’s promotion to the Premier League.
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