Sheffield Wednesday will be hoping to put together back-to-back victories, as they welcome Fleetwood Town to Hillsborough Stadium on Tuesday night.
The Owls come into this fixture after an impressive 2-0 victory over local rivals and Darren Moore’s former side Doncaster Rovers, courtesy of second-half goals from Barry Bannan and Dennis Adeniran.
Whilst Wednesday remain unbeaten in 90 minutes, Fleetwood are winless after three games and sit in 22nd after two league fixtures.
The Cod Army have conceded five goals in their last three games, whereas the Owls are yet to leak this season.
Another win for the home side would keep up their momentum going, as they look for an immediate return to the Championship.
The memories of their play-off finish in the 2019/20 campaign seems to be long forgotten after languishing in midtable last season. Simon Grayson will be hoping his side can get off the mark and avoid being dragged into that relegation battle.
Team news
Josh Windass is out for up to two months with a hamstring injury.
The Owls will be without loan signing Olamide Shodipo, who came off against Huddersfield Town with a muscle strain.
Callum Paterson may return after a head injury sustained on the opening day.
Lee Gregory could be in line to make his first start after impressing off the bench against Doncaster.
Predicted line-up
Sheffield Wednesday (4-3-3):
Peacock-Farrell; Hunt, Iorfa, Hutchinson, Palmer; Wing, Adeniran, Bannan; Green, Gregory, Brown.
Fleetwood Town (3-4-3):
Cairns; Hill, Andrew, Clarke; Clark, Rossiter, Matete, Halliday; Morton, Garner, Morris.
Form guide
The Owls are in good form, as they are still unbeaten in 90 minutes.
Wednesday began with goalless draws against Huddersfield in the Carabao Cup – losing 4-2 on penalties – and Charlton Athletic at The Valley on the opening day.
On Saturday, they got their first win of the season against South Yorkshire rivals Doncaster, where Bannan produced a spectacular opener before Adeniran capped off the afternoon with a goal of his own.
On the flipside, Fleetwood have endured a poor beginning, losing their opening game of the season against Portsmouth thanks to Lee Brown’s 60th-minute effort.
They were then knocked out of the Carabao Cup by Stoke City before suffering another defeat against Lincoln City last time out.
Ones to watch
Sheffield Wednesday – Dennis Adeniran
Adeniran has become an instant hit with Wednesday fans since he arrived from Everton on a free.
The midfielder has played every minute of football so far for the Owls and is fast becoming one of their most important players after linking up well with Lewis Wing and Bannan.
The 22-year-old covers a lot of ground and is not only combative, but he is heavily involved in the Owls’ link-up play going forward, making late runs into the area, which is how he got his maiden goal for Wednesday on Saturday.
Fleetwood Town – Jay Metate
Jay Metate comes into this campaign off the back of a relegation season on a six-month loan at Grimsby Town, however, he was often a bright spark in the Mariners side.
The 20-year-old will want to avoid dropping out of another division this campaign and will look to inspire Grayson’s side to a win sooner rather than later.
The central midfielder is only in his early development as a League One footballer, but he could find himself moving up the pyramid if he continues to impress.
Previous meetings
This will be the first time that Sheffield Wednesday have played Fleetwood.
What the managers have said
Moore stressed the importance of keeping clean sheets this season.
“If you keep clean sheets, you are always in the game to get the three points,” said Moore, speaking ahead of Fleetwood’s visit.
“I have got to be pleased. It is the third game and the third clean sheet. It builds consistency, understanding, relationships and confidence.
“I am pleased to open the home league campaign with three points in front of the home fans.
“I still think two games into the season the players are still finding their feet, touch, rhythm, passing, and accuracy.
“It takes the first half a dozen games for teams to settle into their rhythm and routine. The players have to recover because they have to go again on Tuesday night, which will be another difficult game.
“Some of our passing was not quite what we wanted in the first half, but the main thing is the players are consistently giving their all.”
Grayson explained how his squad are still learning after their poor early form.
Speaking post-match on Saturday, Grayson said: “We can say that we do play well and that we know that the first win is just around the corner, but we do have to learn from every game that we are involved in, staff-wise and then the players as well, whether you are 36 or 18 we have to learn, take the positives and realise we’re all in this together.
“We said the same thing after our previous two matches against Portsmouth and Stoke, we play really well in the opening 45 minutes, but we lost the games and football is all about results and is driven by that, we have a lot of youth, but they’re in the first team because of their quality, but all the group have to grow up and learn quickly.”
How to watch
Supporters are now allowed in grounds at full capacity and are available to be purchased on the gate at Hillsborough Stadium.
You can only listen to the game on either club’s website through iFollow if you’re unable to attend the fixture and live in the UK.