Middlesbrough vs Sheffield Wednesday - prediction, team news, lineups

Aiming to support immoderate hopes live of breaking into the apical 2 of the Championship table successful the last weeks of the regular season, Middlesbrough volition invited Sheffield Wednesday to the Riverside Stadium.

A winless streak successful the run-in leaves the hosts 3 points disconnected 2nd spot with conscionable 3 games remaining, portion their visitors are incapable to ascent disconnected the ft of the array oregon debar relegation successful their last 3 matches.

Match preview

Middlesbrough instrumentality to enactment connected Wednesday aiming to revive immoderate faint automatic promotion hopes successful the Championship run-in, having seen their pb successful the top-two contention slice distant successful a mediocre caller run.

They sat successful rod presumption for the 2nd automatic promotion spot aft back-to-back victories successful aboriginal March, having earned 69 points from their 34 outings, including 39 from their archetypal 19 nether the absorption of Kim Hellberg courtesy of 12 wins alongside conscionable 4 defeats.

Boro person since failed to proceed their awesome tally and seal a instrumentality to the Premier League, though, alternatively rapidly falling down successful the top-two contention owed to a seven-game winless streak, having earned conscionable 4 points successful that clip since aboriginal March, scoring conscionable six goals on the way.

Following location losses to Millwall and Portsmouth and a 2-2 gully with Swansea City, Hellberg's men met second-placed Ipswich Town successful a important contention connected Sunday and doubly led done David Strelec and Tommy Conway, lone to beryllium pegged backmost successful the archetypal fractional by Kasey McAteer earlier Jack Clarke forced a stock of the spoils successful different 2-2 gully by converting an 87th-minute penalty.

Now near 3 points down Ipswich, who person a crippled successful hand, aft that agonising draw, Middlesbrough volition consciousness they request to triumph their last 3 league outings opening connected Wednesday to basal a accidental of regaining a top-two spot and avoiding leaving their promotion hopes to the playoffs. 

Their visitors, meanwhile, caput northbound aiming to instrumentality a large scalp and proceed a pleasing upturn successful signifier into the extremity of the play earlier their impending driblet to League One.

Sheffield Wednesday ever faced an uphill task successful their 2nd consecutive Championship term, and off-field issues culminated with them entering medication successful October, triggering deductions totalling 18 points.

Henrik Pedersen's broadside person failed to flooded that setback and saw their relegation confirmed successful February, inactive sitting connected -6 points having earned conscionable 12 and 1 triumph from their 43 outings, portion losing 30.

The Owls have, astatine least, lifted spirits with 3 consecutive draws arsenic the extremity of the word approaches, though, firstly sharing points astatine location to Leicester City and distant astatine runaway leaders Coventry City earlier hosting Charlton Athletic connected Saturday and earning a stock of the points from a 1-1 gully acknowledgment to Gabriel Otegbayo's 76th-minute leveller aft Matt Godden had the visitors ahead.

Now sitting connected -3 points with 3 games remaining, 2 of which travel distant from location this week, Sheffield Wednesday volition spell successful hunt of a archetypal triumph since September and a 2nd of the play successful the league to determination retired of antagonistic points earlier their relegation.

Middlesbrough Championship form:

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Sheffield Wednesday Championship form:

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Team News

Middlesbrough stay without respective cardinal men heading into Wednesday's game, with prima midfielder Hayden Hackney among those confined to the attraction country alongside Riley McGree and Leo Castledine.

Defenders Alfie Jones and Darragh Lenihan volition besides miss retired again, meaning Adilson Malanda, Dael Fry and Luke Ayling should enactment up successful an unaltered backmost three.

Alex Gilbert and Alan Browne should again articulation Aidan Morris successful the motor country successful the lack of Hackney and McGree, portion Strelec and Conway some got connected the scoresheet connected Sunday, taking the second to 10 league goals for the season.

Sheffield Wednesday are inactive incapable to telephone connected Liam Cooper, Di'Shon Bernard, Ike Ugbo and George Brown.

Key midfielder Svante Ingelsson besides missed the weekend's contention with Charlton, meaning Jaden Heskey and Nathaniel Chalobah should again spouse up successful the motor room.

Ahead of them, Jamal Lowe and Olaf Kobacki whitethorn again articulation Jerry Yates successful a beforehand three, portion Liam Palmer, Otegbayo and Max Lowe should proceed successful a backmost 3 contempt contention from Dominic Iorfa.

Middlesbrough imaginable starting lineup:

Brynn; Malanda, Fry, Ayling; Brittain, Morris, Gilbert, Targett; Browne; Conway, Strelec

Sheffield Wednesday imaginable starting lineup:

Charles; Palmer, Otegbayo, M Lowe; Fusire, Heskey, Chalobah, Adaramola; J Lowe, Yates, Kobacki

We say: Middlesbrough 2-0 Sheffield Wednesday

Middlesbrough person seemingly tally retired of momentum astatine a mediocre clip successful the last weeks of the promotion race, but we inactive fancy them to travel retired connected apical astatine location to a Sheffield Wednesday broadside lacking prime and depth, contempt the visitors' awesome resilience to gully their past 3 games against the odds.

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