Sheffield Wednesday host Middlesbrough at Hillsborough on Saturday.
Neither Sheffield Wednesday nor Middlesbrough are quite where they expected to be at this stage of the Championship season.
Wednesday currently sit 15th in the Championship, with pre-season big-spenders Boro – the visitors at Hillsborough on Saturday – still under-achieving themselves, despite being five places and as many points better off.
Respective managers, Carlos Carvalhal and Garry Monk, are perhaps equally unpopular, and losing this game could plausibly bring an end to either one’s tenure.
Wednesday’s struggles this season can at least be partly explained by the loss of several key players, of whom Keiren Westwood, Tom Lees, Kieran Lee, George Boyd and Fernando Forestieri will not return in time to face Boro.
And the Owls could also be without Jack Hunt, Barry Bannan and Steven Fletcher at Hillsborough.
They are at least boosted by the return of midfield talisman Sam Hutchinson, however, who has endured by his own admission “the worst season that I have had here”, injury wise.
Carvalhal revealed on Thursday that Hutchinson will start against Middlesbrough, but who will join him?
Here’s how we expect Sheffield Wednesday to look…
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