Sheffield Wednesday vs West Brom preview

If anything was a sign of Darren Moore’s intent, it was the signing of former Wolves winger Bakary Sako.

Albion’s boss is building up a myriad of options in the final third. Wes Hoolahan brought him guile, Sako brings him power and pace.

A meticulous planner, Albion’s boss is aware there will come a time when he needs to dig deep into his squad.

“This league is not a sprint, it’s a marathon,” he said.

“Every week we keep learning, we keep implementing, and we just try to keep that togetherness going.

“We’re in a very tough division and we’re competing against 23 other teams.

“Saturday was a good win against difficult opponents but you don’t get chance to savour it because you’ve got another game to look forward to.”

Nothing epitomises this league’s relentlessness more than a tricky midweek fixture away at Hillsborough.

Sheffield Wednesday are unbeaten at home, and have put together an eye-catching run in recent weeks.

“It’s a fixture that if we’re going to contest then we’ll have to be at our very best,” said Moore. “They’re a good team and a big club in this division.”

So are Albion though. And after 20 points from 10 games, they are on course for promotion, but Moore is refusing to get carried away. “All the maths, with the current form we’re showing – I’ll leave it down to you guys,” he said.

“I don’t want to look too far ahead, we just focus on the next game because in the next game there are problems and hurdles to overcome.”

Sako was signed in time to play, but he’s expected to only make the bench at best.

“Nobody’s got the God-given right to come straight in but he’s available so we’ll pick and choose as we see fit,” said Moore.

Matt Phillips, who missed Saturday’s win at Deepdale with a muscle strain, is still a doubt.

“He’s very near,” said Moore. “But we’re just not taking any chances. We’ll have a look at him, and see how he goes.”

That could mean a second successive start for 35-year-old Tyrone Mears at right wing-back, and the team will look very similar to Saturday.

However, there is likely to be one change in the middle of park where Moore continues to rotate Gareth Barry and Chris Brunt.

Having scored 25 goals from their first 10 games, there are no question marks about Albion’s potency in the final third.

But with just one clean sheet to their name so far, Moore does want to see the goals dry up at their own end.

Yet even if the hosts do manage to grab one or two, you wouldn’t bet against the league’s great entertainers simply outscoring them.

Pie and a pint - The Park in Wadsley Lane is a child-friendly pub just a stone’s throw from the ground. Reasonably priced, you can get steaks for under £10.

Memory Lane - In November 2009, Albion won 4-0 at Hillsborough thanks to a brace from Simon Cox plus goals from Jerome Thomas and Chris Brunt.

Key Man - Sam Johnstone will be eager to keep his first clean sheet on the road, but the Owls are yet to draw a blank at home, so he’ll need to be on top form.

The Opposition:

In-form Sheffield Wednesday have proved in recent weeks that they are capable of mixing it with the big boys.

One defeat in seven has moved them into the large pack of teams on 15 points circling the top spots.

They may be in 12th, but they are just one point off the play-off places and five points off the top.

But it has been the calibre of their recent opponents that has impressed.

In September they held Leeds United and Stoke City to draws while beating Villa and Reading. Their only blemish came away at Nottingham Forest.

Manager Jos Luhukay was a slightly left-field appointment in January 2018, having spent his entire coaching career in Germany.

But after a strong finish to last season, when the Owls won six of their last nine games, he has got Wednesday off to an encouraging start this time around.

Tonight, however, he faces one of his biggest dilemmas of the season so far.

Former Villa midfielder Barry Bannan has been Wednesday’s linchpin this season, dictating play from the middle of the park.

An ever-present, he has also scored spectacular strikes against Millwall and Stoke.

But thanks to a fifth yellow card of the campaign picked up in their 1-1 draw against Leeds last Friday, he is suspended for this game.

“We must handle it as a team,” said Luhukay. “The quality of Barry is not easy to replace but we will try to pick the best team for West Brom and we will give everything.

“It is frustrating he will miss Wednesday.

“We know how important Barry is. He was on four yellow cards for two weeks and we knew the fifth would be a ban.”

Tottenham loanee Josh Onomah is likely to replace him in midfield alongside Joey Pelupessy although Adam Reach, who scored a spectacular goal against Leeds, could also move inside off the wing if required.

Luhukay has chopped and changed his formation this season.

The Owls started the term playing 3-5-2 but after a couple of poor results he move to a 4-2-3-1 and their fortunes changed.

In recent weeks, however they have played 3-4-3, and will likely do so tonight.

Reach can play central midfield and on either wing, and the versatile midfielder is happy to slot in wherever.

“We are constantly learning, tweaking systems and rotating players,” he said.

“We are trying to find our best team and formation, but I think everyone can see we are on the up and improving from last season.

“I think we are getting better and better under this manager and hopefully that can continue.

“We are not that far away from the top of the table. I think we showed at times we can match a team like Leeds.”