It will be a reunion at Hillsborough as Garry Monk finds himself in the opposite dugout to former side Leeds United, keen to mastermind victory over the side he led to seventh in the table back in 2017.
After spells with Middlesbrough and Birmingham City, Monk was appointed Sheffield Wednesday manager at the start of September overseeing four wins from his first eight games in charge and leading the Owls to third in the league.
Meanwhile, Marcelo Bielsa’s Leeds United are continuing steadily, living up to pre-season promotion expectations and sitting second in the table behind West Bromwich Albion.
Monk has Wednesday clicking
With Steve Bruce swapping Yorkshire for Tyneside to manage Newcastle United in July, Wednesday started the season managerless, with very few expecting the side who finished last season 12th to mount any real promotion charge. However, thirteen games in and Garry Monk at the helm, Wednesday look to be taking advantage of their minimalised expectations.
Massimo Luongo scored the only goal of the game in Tuesday's clash against Stoke City, which subsequently marked a three-game unbeaten run for Monk. One glance at the table and its easy to see where their strong points are. Conceding just ten in thirteen means they hold the second-best defensive record in the league, behind opposition Leeds, and Monk has strengthened the defence with three clean sheets already.
Equally they offer a potent attack. Midfielder Barry Bannan has for a long time been a creative presence in the Championship. His passing ability paired with winger Kadeem Harris’s pace and flair, Adam Reach’s work rate and Steven Fletcher’s natural goal scoring prowess means that under Monk, Wednesday could be a real dark horse for the play-offs this season.
Monk has no fresh injury concerns, yet has a decision to make as Keiran Westwood returns to full fitness; is the form of second choice keeper Cameron Dawson too good for him to be dropped?
Are Leeds underperforming?
After last season’s play-off heartbreak, Leeds fans expected their side to overcome the devastation to mount a successful promotion campaign. Sitting in second, you’d say Bielsa and his squad are living up to expectations, however, fans have still been sure to vent their frustrations.
It was a familiar story for Leeds on Tuesday night, missed chances meant the Whites left Deepdale with a 1-1 draw against a resilient Preston North End side. Preston’s home form would suggest this was a good point for Leeds and probably the deserved result, yet Leeds probably felt hard done by making the short journey home to Yorkshire.
After gameweek thirteen, the expected goals tables place Leeds top of the league with twelve wins, just one loss, and a total of 26 goals. In reality, Leeds have won just seven and have 17 goals, the lowest in the play-off places.
Fans are beginning to point fingers at £7 million striker Patrick Bamford, who’s shot conversion rate of just 8% demonstrates his inability to win games for Leeds this season. The game was saved on Tuesday night by on loan Arsenal forward Eddie Nketiah who’s 86th minute header made him Leeds’ top scorer in all competitions, despite not starting a single league game.
Will Bielsa give up his loyalty to Bamford in favour of Nketiah?
Leeds also have no new injury news yet will be strengthened with the return of captain Liam Cooper and youngster Jamie Shackleton.
To tight to call?
It’s likely to be a tense and feisty affair Saturday lunch time. As mentioned, the leagues two best defences come up against each other, therefore goals may be far and few to come by.
Last season’s fixture between the two sides saw two stunning efforts from Adam Reach and Mateusz Klich result in a 1-1 draw at Hillsborough, whilst Jack Harrsion’s well placed effort gave Leeds a narrow victory back at Elland Road.
Whilst all signs point to the game being a tight contest, Sheffield Wednesday fans will be praying for a repeat of their 6-0 home victory over the Whites back in 2014.