Two teams sat at opposite ends of the Championship table at this early stage of the season will square off in the seventh round of league fixtures on Saturday, as Sheffield Wednesday welcome West Bromwich Albion to Hillsborough.
The hosts find themselves 22nd having gone five games without a victory since the opening day, while their visitors sit at the summit of England's second tier thanks to an unbeaten start.
Match preview
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Sheffield Wednesday return to Hillsborough on Saturday aiming to arrest a five-match winless streak in the Championship, having failed to build on an eye-catching opening-day 4-0 beating of Plymouth Argyle in their first full season under the management of Danny Rohl.
Indeed, in their last five attempts the Owls have added just one more point to their tally, as the perfect start was immediately followed by consecutive defeats at the hands of Sunderland, Leeds United and Millwall prior to the September international break.
A first draw then came in agonising fashion at home to Queens Park Rangers, having gone 1-0 up in injury time through Barry Bannan only for Alfie Lloyd to force a share of the spoils with a 96th-minute leveller.
Then on the back of a 1-0 victory away at Blackpool to progress to the EFL Cup fourth round, Rohl's men most recently visited Luton Town on Saturday, and, after again going ahead through Bannan, they left empty-handed as Carlton Morris converted a penalty 13 minutes from time and snatched all three points for the hosts with his second in the dying embers.
Having now dropped into the bottom three in England's second tier as a result of their tough run, Sheffield Wednesday will be desperate to record a second league win of the campaign on Saturday to kickstart a climb up the division.
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They face another tricky test, though, as the visitors arrive in South Yorkshire on the back of a near-perfect start to their promotion bid this term.
Following their fifth-placed Championship finish and semi-final playoff defeat last season, West Bromwich Albion sit atop the table after six games in the 2024-25 term, having gone unbeaten thus far while amassing 16 points.
Their only dropped points came in a goalless stalemate with Leeds United in mid-August, and Carlos Corberan's side have bounced back in style since, firstly seeing off Stoke City and Swansea City prior to the international break.
The Baggies have since turned those results into a four-match winning streak in England's second tier, beating Portsmouth 3-0 on their travels before most recently hosting Plymouth Argyle on Saturday and adding another three points to their tally as Josh Maja netted the only goal of the game on the hour mark.
With momentum quickly growing at the Hawthorns, having netted 10 goals and only conceded two in their six outings thus far, West Bromwich Albion will bid to further strengthen their position at the front of the leading pack with a fifth straight victory on Saturday.
Team News
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Sheffield Wednesday head into Saturday's contest without defender Di'Shon Bernard, who will serve a suspension after being sent off in their defeat to Luton Town, while Dominic Iorfa and Nathaniel Chalobah are set to continue spells in the treatment room and Djeidi Gassama is a fresh injury concern.
In Bernard's absence, Michael Ihiekwe should come in to join Liam Palmer and Akin Famewo in a back three, while midfielder Svante Ingelsson may again have to settle for a place off the bench with Shea Charles preferred alongside captain Barry Bannan, who has scored in each of their last two outings.
Danny Rohl may opt to switch up his attacking unit after Olaf Kobacki and Josh Windass supported Michael Smith against Luton Town, with Jamal Lowe, Ike Ugbo and Anthony Musaba all fighting to come back in from the outset.
Carlos Corberan may opt to deploy an unchanged West Brom starting XI from last week's victory over Plymouth Argyle, with midfielder Jayson Molumby and attacker Daryl Dike remaining sidelined by injuries.
Their line will again be led by Josh Maja, who leads the league's scoring charts with six goals in six appearances so far this term.
Despite competition from Jed Wallace, Grady Diangana, Mikey Johnston and Lewis Dobbin, Maja could again have support from the trio of Karlan Grant, John Swift and Tom Fellows, who has contributed four assists in his six Championship games this term, while Uros Racic and Alex Mowatt should continue their partnership in the engine room.
Sheffield Wednesday possible starting lineup:
Beadle; Palmer, Ihiekwe, Famewo; Valery, Charles, Bannan, Johnson; Musaba, Ugbo, Windass
West Bromwich Albion possible starting lineup:
Palmer; Furlong, Ajayi, Bartley, Heggem; Racic, Mowatt; Fellows, Swift, Grant; Maja
We say: Sheffield Wednesday 0-2 West Bromwich Albion
West Bromwich Albion are in formidable form and growing in confidence under Corberan, and we see them having enough to outclass a Sheffield Wednesday side who are lacking any form heading into the weekend.
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Sam Varley
