Two sides fighting at opposite ends of the League One table will square off at Hillsborough on Saturday, as second-placed Sheffield Wednesday entertain MK Dons.
Thanks to an eye-catching run of form, the Owls now have a six-point lead over third place in England's third tier with two games in hand, while their visitors recently jumped back out of the bottom four but remain just a single point above the drop zone.
Match preview
© Reuters
Coming into the weekend as one of League One's form sides, Sheffield Wednesday find themselves in a particularly strong position in the fight for promotion to the Championship this season, having quickly built up a healthy lead over the playoff places.
That has been thanks to an unbeaten run in England's third tier which now stands at 18 matches and dates back to early October, with only six of those outings ending in draws.
After sitting third for the majority of the first half of the campaign, the Owls would successfully leapfrog Ipswich Town and move into the automatic promotion spots as they put six straight three-point hauls on the board between Christmas and early February, before meeting Ipswich and maintaining a six-point lead over the Tractor Boys with a 2-2 draw, albeit having been pegged back after leading 2-0 through Michael Smith and George Byers at Portman Road.
Hoping to further extend their unbeaten run and make a return to winning ways to strengthen their lead over the chasing pack, Darren Moore's side most recently hosted Morecambe on Tuesday, and they successfully put a 19th three-point haul of the season on the board in a 3-0 victory, as Barry Bannan opened the scoring in the first minute before Josh Windass added a brace in a dominant display.
Thanks to other results in midweek, with Ipswich and Derby County both dropping points, the South Yorkshire outfit now have a more enviable lead than ever in the top two, as they sit six points better off than third-placed Bolton Wanderers with two games in hand, while only trailing league leaders Plymouth Argyle by two points having also played a game fewer than them, and Moore's men will now look to take another step closer to automatic promotion with a second triumph of the week at Hillsborough.
© Reuters
They welcome an MK Dons side who face the tough trip to Sheffield in their bid to improve their standing in the fight at the other end of the division, with just a one-point lead over Morecambe in the bottom four.
After sitting on just 21 points from their opening 24 matches, Mark Jackson's side hoped to kick on as they followed up a draw against Lincoln City with a 2-1 triumph away at fellow strugglers Forest Green Rovers, but they were unable to build a more positive run, losing their next two outings 1-0 and 2-0 at home to Shrewsbury Town and Exeter City respectively.
Those results saw the Dons drop back below Morecambe and into the relegation zone, but they would bounce back with a 2-0 triumph away at Bristol Rovers, thanks to goals from Mohamed Eisa and Max Dean, before adding another point to their tally in a 1-1 draw at home to Oxford United last weekend, as Sullay Kaikai's 25th-minute opener was cancelled out by a Lewis Bate leveller 20 minutes from time.
Looking to extend an unbeaten run and climb further away from the threat of the drop, Jackson's men faced an unenviable test away at Bolton Wanderers on Tuesday, and they would eventually fall to a 5-0 thrashing following a rampant Trotters display, as Ricardo Santos opened the scoring early on and Luke Mbete and Gethin Jones found the net before half time, with Eoin Toal and Randell Williams adding their names to the scoresheet after the interval.
Although the Owls did give them a let-off by beating Morecambe on Tuesday, leaving the Dons still one point above the bottom four, their schedule is not getting any easier with a trip to the league's second-placed side looming, and they will be desperate to pull off a surprise result at the weekend in the hope of increasing their cushion prior to the run-in.
Team News
© Reuters
Sheffield Wednesday remain without defenders Ben Heneghan and Michael Ihiekwe through injuries, while Dominic Iorfa sat out on Tuesday as a precaution, and with no need to rush the centre-back back into action too soon after their clean sheet, Darren Moore will likely opt to deploy an unchanged defensive line featuring Liam Palmer, Aden Flint and Akin Famewo, with Dennis Adeniran filling in in a wing-back role with Jack Hunt also sidelined.
George Byers was substituted off at half time in the Morecambe contest, but his issue is not believed to be serious and he should again join Will Vaulks and captain Barry Bannan in the engine room, unless Moore opts to switch to a more attacking setup.
Josh Windass is bound to keep his place up front, after hitting his eighth and ninth league goals of the season on Tuesday, having also contributed seven assists in England's third tier, while Michael Smith may have to fight for his spot in attack with Lee Gregory and Mallik Wilks expected to return to contention after injury setbacks.
After their thrashing on Tuesday, Mark Jackson may look to make several changes to his MK Dons side at the weekend, with Will Grigg fighting to come in and lead the line from the start, having hit seven goals in all competitions so far this campaign, while Jonathan Leko and Sullay Kaikai are vying to keep their spots in the attack.
Elsewhere, Bradley Johnson and Matthew Smith are both hoping to come into the starting XI in midfield, after Paris Maghoma was preferred alongside Josh McEachran last time out, while Jack Tucker and Zak Jules may see their positions under threat in the middle of the defence, albeit with the Dons' options limited given key defender Warren O'Hora's ongoing injury.
Sheffield Wednesday possible starting lineup:
Dawson; Palmer, Flint, Famewo; Adeniran, Byers, Bannan, Vaulks, Johnson; Windass, Smith
MK Dons possible starting lineup:
Cumming; Lawrence, Tucker, Jules, Harvie; McEachran, Johnson, Smith; Leko, Grigg, Kaikai
We say: Sheffield Wednesday 2-0 MK Dons
With far more momentum and quality than their visitors, we can only envisage Sheffield Wednesday extending their eye-catching run of form with another relatively comfortable triumph at the weekend.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Top tip
Sam Varley
