Danny Rohl and Scott Parker are set to face each other for the first time this weekend, when Sheffield Wednesday take on Burnley.
Sheffield Wednesday manager Danny Rohl and Burnley manager Scott Parker have never gone up against each other before.
But the pair will be well aware of the threat they pose each other; Burnley currently sitting in 3rd place of the Championship table, with an expensive squad, and Wednesday having beaten West Brom and Coventry City in recent weeks.
Both have had different routes into management but both have enjoyed success, albeit on differing scales.
For Parker and his Clarets side, a trip to Hillsborough regardless of how well Wednesday are doing, is always going to prove difficult.
And the previous promotion-winner with Bournemouth and Fulham may have one particular headache going into this weekend, after some of the tactical changes Rohl made in Wednesday’s last outing against Coventry City.
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Danny Rohl’s surprise midfield selection will be a headache for Scott Parker
Following the September international break, Rohl changed his Wednesday shape to a 5-2-2-1, with Barry Bannan and Shea Charles the two in midfield.
But for the 2-1 win at Coventry City last time out, Rohl brought in Svante Ingelsson, making for a very fluid midfield shape, in a formation that at times was hard to decipher.
It was a surprise for fans who’d long wanted to see all of Bannan, Charles, and Ingelsson in the starting XI, but who never really expected to see it, and a win against a solid Coventry outfit suggests that the change worked.
Though whether or not Rohl opts with that shape and selection this weekend is somewhat puzzling, even for Wednesday fans, let alone Parker.
Available midfield options for Sheffield Wednesday vs Burnley
Central midfield is a position that the Owls aren’t that well-stocked in. But it seems as though everyone is nearing fitness now with Nathanial Chalobah on the mend.
Ahead of this weekend, Chalobah shared an injury update on Instagram, suggesting that he’s closing in on a return to fitness.
Should he make the squad for Burnley, Rohl will have the likes of Bannan, Charles, Ingelsson, and Chalobah to choose from, with youngster Sean Fusire another option.
So who Rohl starts remains to be seen. Charles is arguably Wednesday’s most impressive player right now and so he surely starts, along with Bannan who’s been in fine form of late.
The game on Saturday could certainly be a tactical battle between two good Championship managers.