Here we go again, derby week. I hate them, I hate derby games. Don't get me wrong, winning them gives you the highest of highs but losing the lowest of lows. The nerves, the tension and the fact that a at times quite vibrant city like this one tends to come to standstill. It all adds up to a very nervy day/night. It's everything in Sheffield when it comes to football, you're red or you're blue. You're an Owl or you're a Blade. I think what makes the game that bit more special at the moment at least is that there haven't been loads of meetings recently. If you take my lifetime for example, at 23 (born September 95) Friday's game will only be the 20th meeting in that time. When you consider some one of the same age in say Manchester or Liverpool will have double that are someone in Glasgow will have many more. It makes you realise, often the good times have coincided with the other side having a downward period.
It's obviously not been the best few weeks for Wednesday. We're coming into this game off the back of four straight defeats. The mood of the fans at the moment is pretty low. The atmosphere on Saturday was awful. People walking out as early as 56 minutes. People shouting at Chansiri to sack Jos or shouting at Jos to walk. People not even being bothered enough to shout at the players. It was a pretty crap afternoon to be honest. When you need a lift some will have differing views on whether this is the best game to have next and I can see both sides of it but I'm going to choose to agree with Owls defender Daniel Pudil who say's it's a great game to have to try and put things right. If you think about it, what other game can give the fans a life like winning at Bramall Lane can? Nothing. It's a fantastic opportunity for Jos and his players to for a week or two at least to win some credit and give the fans something to smile about again.
United
From afar it's difficult not to look at Sheffield United and praise them for the way they have gone about things over the last few years. After years in the doldrums and a string of managers failing to get the blades up Chris Wilder did just that and last year proved that you don't need to spend loads of money to get a team performing well in this division. I hate saying all that, I hate praising them but it's not like we didn't see it first hand at Hillsborough last season. This season I thought they recruited quite well, John Egan, Connor Washington, David McGoldrick. All decent Championship players with experience and knowhow. Then came the jewel in the crown with the arrival of Ollie Norward from Brighton. A fantastic player at this level and the player United had been missing for a while. Again I hate doing it but fair play they signed a top player there.
While they have started well sitting 3rd in the division. Are they the third best team in the league? Not for me. I've seen enough of United this season to give a bit of an opinion on them and I don't see them finishing in the top six. I still think Wilder isn't tactically good enough and hasn't learned from last season where they would often throw points away with gung-ho football and taking key players off in games. The same is still happening and while they have a better squad I still don't think they will be in the automatic or play off picture come May.
But all that is largely irrelevant as come Friday it's all about that game and nothing else. The main threats will be fairly obvious. Billy Sharp will more than likely lead the line, blades fan, blades captain. Made it known he doesn't particularly like Wednesday (you did nearly sign for us though Billy). He's the obvious goal threat and it would be foolish for us to not take him seriously. Leon Clarke may well not start but the enigma that is Leon will always be a thorn in the side of Wednesday. Once an Owl who's time at Hillsborough was frustrating and inconsistent he's found a home at Bramall Lane and of course we all know what he did last season. Mark Duffy, another of least season's scorers at Hillsborough will be a threat if he plays alongside his midfield compatriots, John Fleck, Ollie Norwood and possibly Paul Coutts depending on how United line up.
Tactics Talk: How to Wednesday win this game?
Now, I'll level with you here. If I had a proper answer to this I'd probably be on the phone to Jos but I'll try my best. Wednesday I think it's fair to say are very unlikely to be able to go to Bramall Lane and do what they did last season. Sit back, defend, counter attack when we could. While we will at some stage have to dig in I can't see United being as wasteful in the final third as they were last year and again both sides have changed a bit since then. For me the one thing that might help Wednesday is United tend to play the same way against most teams. 3-5-2 and try and attack as much as possible. The two wide centre backs often find themselves way up the pitch, 'false number 5's' I believe one Sky pundit called them. This might be Wednesday's way in. The wing backs as well like to get up the pitch leaving space at the back and if Wednesday can get into those areas they might have a decent chance. It could be a game for Lucas Joao to use his pace to get into those positions. Steven Fletcher might be able to do similar things, his last couple of performances have been decent and have shown that kind of quality to move defenders around. I don't rate United's keeper Dean Henderson. A few of the goals United have conceded this season I feel he should have saved. Obviously I don't watch them every week but how he's judged to be better than Simon Moore is beyond me.
Obviously Wednesday come into this game leaking goals for fun, I'm not going to go into the keeper debate here as it's a dull debate and it's not really relevant. We've been told Westwood won't play and that's it. As for the defence, despite my doubts about three at the back back in August I do feel we need to revert back to it at the moment. It seems to be the best way to keep our better defenders on the pitch. It could be a tough night of sitting back and being patient. Wednesday cannot afford to keep allowing teams to take games away from them as easily as some have been doing.
As much as it is a cliché, anything can happen in a derby. It would be easy to sit here and say that Wednesday who can't defend go to United who score a lot and it will have to be a goal fest for Wednesday to win but sometimes a derby can throw up those strange score lines. It's certainly got all the narrative hasn't it? Wednesday without a clean sheet and have lost the last four go to Bramall Lane and win 1-0. Would be nice eh? We will need players like Bannan and Reach to be on top form. The likes of Tom Lees and Michael Hector will need to be right at it. The fans will be right behind them whatever happens, they always are in a derby. I saw a few people saying the wind might be taken out of the Wednesday fans given the form but in truth it doesn't matter what form either team is in both sets of fans will be up for it. I'm sure United will have some kind of thing prepared when the players come out like last season's change of pre match music. I'm sure Wilder will have them up for it.
Jos
I don't want this blog to be a Jos in or Jos out debate as that's been kind of done to death over the last few days. For me Friday night might well be Jos' date with destiny as far as his Sheffield Wednesday managerial career goes. If he wins he might get a bit of a reprieve with the fans for a few weeks at least. If he loses, particularly if he loses badly then it could well be the end for him. It certainly would make his already fairly non-existent relationship with the fans even worse and probably would be irreparable from there. He's going to need his players to give him everything. If he hasn't lost the dressing room then that will need to be on full show on Friday night. If he has then it will end up being on show no matter what. It's a big chance for him to get some much needed pride back. I like Jos, I think there are some things he's done than have gone unnoticed, that isn't to say i don't have questions and don't agree with everything he's done but this is a tough job. It's not been easy for him.
Prediction
Predicting a derby game is a bit of a dangerous game. They tend to throw up things you'd never imagine happening. Early goals, early cards, new mangers, new players on debut, first touch scorers. This fixture down the years has had it all. For me I'd be lying if I said I expected anything. Yeah we're going into it clear underdogs but United don't deal well with pressure. 2012 they were outstanding favourites and blew it big time. This January they bottled it, 2010 even though ultimately Wednesday went down United failed to beat us in the run in after claims of "we'll put the final nail in the coffin". For me I'm not going to write this and not predict a Wednesday win, I've seen and heard a lot of people saying they'd take a point and while I'd probably agree with that I think we might just nick it. I think if Wednesday are to win it they have to make it a high scoring affair. I can't see us getting a 1-0 or even a 2-1 so I'll say 3-2 to Wednesday. Hopefully we can see another Tudgay-esque moment or another Madine style equaliser late on.
Thanks for reading
Tom
WAWAW
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