Wrexham, aiming for a third successive promotion this season, are set to travel to Oakwell Stadium on Wednesday afternoon to face League One playoff hopefuls Barnsley.
The hosts are seventh in the table with 36 points from 23 matches, while the visitors are second in the league with 48 points from their first 23 fixtures.
Match preview
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Wrexham have experienced an extraordinary past few seasons, clinching the National League title and earning promotion as champions in 2022-23, followed by a second-placed finish and promotion from League Two in 2023-24.
Phil Parkinson's side are now looking to record a sensational third successive promotion as they aim for a place in the Championship next campaign, and they have certainly enjoyed a strong start in pursuit of that goal.
Wrexham currently sit second in the League One table with 48 points after 23 matches played, from 14 wins, six draws and just three losses, leaving them one point behind first-placed Birmingham City and one point ahead of third-placed Wycombe Wanderers, though they have played twice more than the league leaders and once more than Wycombe.
They are coming into this game having enjoyed a brilliant run of results in recent weeks, remaining unbeaten in their last nine matches across all competitions, including seven wins and two draws in that time.
While that form will leave them with plenty of confidence heading into this one, their away record has been a major problem so far this campaign, sitting 13th in the League One table for away results with just 13 points from 10 games on the road, after three wins, four draws and three losses.
Barnsley will look to exploit Wrexham's vulnerability on the road, although the Tykes have struggled at home, having been one of the worst-performing teams in the division in front of their own fans.
They have picked up just 11 points from 11 home matches this campaign, leaving them 21st in the home table, but their away results - 25 points from 12 matches - has kept Barnsley in the race for a playoff place.
The hosts sit seventh in the table after 23 matches with 36 points, from 10 wins, six draws and seven losses, leaving them narrowly one point behind sixth-placed Reading.
Darrell Clarke's side will also be boosted having won each of their last two matches, marking an end to a disappointing period of just one win in the eight prior outings.
Team News
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Barnsley will be without 19-year-old Fabio Jalo, who has been sidelined with an injury since the reverse fixture in early December, when Wrexham secured a 1-0 victory.
Elsewhere, the hosts could remain unchanged from the side that has secured victories in each of their last two outings, with top scorer Davis Keillor-Dunn leading the line.
As for the visitors, Arthur Okonkwo, Jack Marriott and Callum Burton are all unavailable to feature in this match due to ongoing injury issues.
Steven Fletcher could be in line for a place in the starting 11 for this game having come off the bench to score late winners in each of Wrexham's last two games, scoring in the 88th-minute against Blackpool and 91st against Wigan Athletic.
Barnsley possible starting lineup:
Killip; Gevigney, Pines, McCarthy; O'Keeffe, Phillips, Connell, Russell, Cotter; Watters, Keillor-Dunn
Wrexham possible starting lineup:
Howard; Cleworth, O'Connell, Brunt; Barnett, Dobson, James, Rathbone, McClean; Fletcher, Mullin
We say: Barnsley 1-2 Wrexham
Barnsley may have struggled at home this season, but Wrexham have been far from formidable when playing on the road, leading us to believe this one will be a tightly-contested encounter.
However, the visitors have already shown their superiority over Barnsley with a 1-0 win in early December, and we expect them to secure another victory in this one.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Ellis Stevens
