Sheffield Wednesday kick off their 2024 with a home game against Hull City this afternoon.
Sheffield Wednesday ended 2023 on a high note after winning 1-0 away at Preston North End, ending a run of two-straight defeats in the process.
Danny Rohl‘s side have closed the gap to safety back to six points and return to Hillsborough where they’ve lost just one of their last four, beating both Blackburn Rovers and QPR in the process.
Yorkshire rivals Hull City are enjoying a strong season in what is Liam Rosenior’s first full campaign in charge; his side sit in 6th after ending their 2023 with a 3-2 win over Blackburn Rovers.
Sheffield Wednesday team news for Hull City
The Owls are without a fair few players for this one.
There’s a couple of suspensions with Bambo Diaby serving the second of a three-match ban, and George Byers serving the first of a three-match ban.
Elsewhere, The Star report that Akin Famewo and key midfielder Will Vaulks are expected to miss this one with hamstring issues, joining the likes of Juan Delgado, Dominic Iorfa, John Buckley, and Mallik Wilks on the sidelines.
Callum Paterson appears to be 50/50 after missing the last game through concussion protocols, whilst Momo Diaby is expected to miss a few more games as he works his way back to fitness.
The situation regarding Michael Smith remains somewhat unknown, with the striker having now missed the last five.
How will Danny Rohl line up tomorrow?
There’s a few tough selection calls facing Rohl tomorrow.
Defensively, Wednesday are pretty low on numbers with Diaby, Iorfa, Delgado, and now Famewo out; Famewo’s absence could see Di’Shon Bernard return to the middle, with Liam Palmer starting on the right.
Vaulks’ absence is a key miss for Wednesday and with Byers also unavailable, we could see another makeshift midfield with Pol Valentin and Barry Bannan two of a midfield three, then perhaps 25-year-old Tyreeq Bakinson coming in for a rare start.
The front-line should remain unchanged from Preston.
Here’s how we expect Sheffield Wednesday to line up this afternoon…
Dawson (GK)
Johnson
Ihiekwe
Bernard
James
Bannan
Bakinson
Valentin
Gassama
Cadamarteri
Musaba