Looking to cement their spot in the top six this weekend, West Bromwich Albion will welcome Oxford United to The Hawthorns for a Championship battle on Saturday afternoon.
The Baggies have endured a mixed run of form following the departure of Carlos Corberan to Valencia, whilst the U's are faring well under the stewardship of Gary Rowett.
Match preview
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Since Mowbray returned to the managerial hotseat at the Black Country club in January, West Brom have won just two of their six Championship matches, damaging their hopes of creating a gap between themselves and the chasing pack in the race for a top-six finish this term.
That being said, the Baggies secured a respectable point at the base of Millwall in London last weekend, when a Joe Bryan own goal was enough to restore parity in the contest for the visitors following an opener from Lions defender Jake Cooper inside the first 20 minutes.
Collecting a modest tally of four points from their last three second-tier battles, West Brom have dropped down to sixth spot in the Championship rankings ahead of Saturday's hosting of Oxford, just a single point above a resurgent Coventry City side who are thriving with Frank Lampard at the helm.
Only Burnley (0), Sunderland (0) and Leeds United (1) have suffered defeat on fewer occasions at home in the Championship than the Baggies (2) this season, although Mowbray's men endured a sobering night last time out at The Hawthorns, where a Makhtar Gueye brace won the day for managerless Blackburn Rovers.
Owing to their well-documented consistency issues, West Brom have failed to win back-to-back matches in the second tier since September, and with games against Leeds and Burnley to come over the next few weeks, Albion will have to perform exceptionally to end that statistic.
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Since consecutive home victories over Blackburn Rovers and relegation-threatened Luton Town in January, Oxford have experienced a worrying dip in form in the Championship, with Saturday afternoon's visitors currently in the midst of a five-game winless spell, scoring just the single goal during that run.
The U's suffered their 13th defeat of the second-tier campaign last time out, when League One champions Portsmouth travelled to the Kassam Stadium and returned to the South Coast boasting maximum points, with Andre Dozzell and Mark O'Mahony finding the net for Pompey.
With their last five matches yielding only three points, Oxford have slumped to 16th spot in the Championship standings ahead of this weekend's Black Country trip, but the newly-promoted outfit still possess a comforting nine-point buffer over Derby County in the highest of the relegation spots.
Unsurprisingly, the second-tier minnows have been poor on the road so far during the 2024-25 campaign, with the U's winning just one of their 16 Championship away contests to date, meaning that only Derby, Luton and Plymouth Argyle have collected fewer points away from their respective homes.
Only the Pilgrims (6) have netted fewer than Oxford's 10 away goals to date, with Rowett's side boasting Mark Harris as their current leading marksman, despite the Welsh striker finding the net once in the league since the end of August.
Team News
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Earning a red card after the full-time whistle against Sheffield Wednesday earlier this month, West Brom defender Kyle Bartley will serve the final game of his three-match suspension this weekend.
The Baggies have suffered a fresh injury blow over the past week in the form of veteran Jed Wallace, who is sidelined for a number of weeks owing to a leg problem.
Making his long-awaited return to the pitch at Millwall last time out, Daryl Dike will be looking to have a goalscoring impact off the bench at The Hawthorns.
Oxford are short on options in defence, with both Gregory Leigh (muscle) and Elliott Moore (groin) currently in the medical room of the visitors.
The U's were dealt a major fitness blow at the beginning of February, with former Walsall striker Tom Bradshaw suffering a campaign-ending ligament injury.
West Bromwich Albion possible starting lineup:
Wildsmith; Furlong, Ajayi, Heggem, Styles; Molumby, Mowatt; Fellows, Diangana, Johnston; Armstrong
Oxford United possible starting lineup:
Cumming; Kioso, Helik, Brown, Long; Vaulks, Brannagan; Placheta, Rodrigues, Romeny; Harris
We say: West Bromwich Albion 1-0 Oxford United
Despite the surprise defeat at home to Blackburn, West Brom remain a formidable outfit at The Hawthorns and should be confident of maximum points against Oxford.
The U's are struggling in front of net and now face a daunting trip to the Black Country for the first time since an EFL Cup loss in 2014.
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Carter White
