Sheffield Wednesday will be hoping they can get their first win of the season as they head down to face promotion-hopefuls Milton Keynes Dons.
Saturday’s hosts began their League One campaign with a 1-0 defeat at Cambridge whilst The Owls had to settle for a point on their thrilling 3-3 draw with Portsmouth.
Liam Manning’s side had a busy summer in the transfer market after losing key figures Harry Darling and Scott Twine. The latter had a phenomenal season last time out scooping the League One player of the year award whilst Darling was a big presence at the back for The Dons as they finished third.
The recruitment team flexed their resources this summer, replacing the departed Darling with Jack Tucker, one of the divisions top performing defenders of recent years at Gillingham.
Going forwards, they’ve used the money from Twine to bring in some real depth, signing Nathan Holland, Conor Grant and Will Grigg all of whom are proven at this level. Grant, certainly one to keep an eye on with the youngster a graduate of The Owls academy and made a substitute appearance for Wednesday in a Carabao Cup win over Rochdale in 2020 before he went on to sign for Dale later that season.
They’ve also added Irish Premier Division duo Dawson Devoy and Darragh Burns who are unknown quantities in this country but come with exciting reputations.
Alongside that Liam Manning has the threat of Mo Eisa at his disposal, who bagged 11 in 34 games last season, whilst at the other end Jamie Cumming on loan from Chelsea will take some beating after a stellar season last time out.
However, beating the Dons keeper wasn’t a problem for The Owls the last time these teams met when Darren Moore’s side ran out as 3-2 winners in the game that saw Barry Bannan score his unbelievable long-range volley.
Team news for Wednesday will contain at least one change to last week’s lineup as striker Lee Gregory was sent off late on, giving Michael Smith the chance to make a mark on his first start for his new club.
At the back, Moore may be tempted to change things up after being disappointed with the three goals his team conceded against Pompey. Akin Famewo is yet to make his debut for The Owls and could well be set for an appearance at Stadium MK.
Saturday’s game will certainly be a telling one with both sides left frustrated last weekend and both will be out to get some early points on the board as they hope to build a promotion charge.
Could be another high-scorer and I’ll go for that whilst sitting firmly on the fence, 2-2.
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