The domestic football returns from the international break on Friday evening when Cardiff City host Sheffield Wednesday at the Cardiff City Stadium, in a clash between two sides chasing promotion out of the Championship this season.
The Bluebirds will be looking to regain the Premier League spot which they held last season while the Owls will be aiming to get back to the big time and end their lengthy exile from the elite of English football.
Cardiff City
After losing two of their first three matches this season, Cardiff City were on a seven match unbeaten run before they ran into the leaders West Brom in rampant form last time out and succumbed 4-2. That wasn’t the worst effort in the world though and apart from the fact they have had a fortnight to dwell on it, it shouldn’t have done much harm to their confidence, albeit their critics could still point to an overall lack of goals.
The style might not be pleasing to watch and there is no doubt in my eyes that Cardiff are not as strong as they were the last time they won promotion to the Premier League, but being hard to beat gets you places in this division and they have that up their sleeve at the very least. It will be interesting to see if they kick on now that they have established a platform to build form after the opening 11 matches.
Sheffield Wednesday
There has already been a good deal of upheaval at Sheffield Wednesday this season, but now is the time for them to knuckle down and push on with the aim of winning matches and pushing for promotion. They sit just three points off the lead in the Championship table even though they are eighth in it, and a fair sized win will move them to the summit overnight at the very least, which highlights how in the mix they are.
Only Leeds United have conceded fewer goals than Sheffield Wednesday in the Championship this season but the Owls are one of the lower scoring sides in the division with just 16 from their 11 matches. That is something Garry Monk will need to rectify moving forward if they are to challenge seriously at the top end, but for now a reliance on a defensive solidarity is not necessarily a bad thing.
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Team News
Cardiff are hoping that the international break has given them sufficient time to get Sol Bamba up to full speed after his injury nightmare. He could return for this one but Isaac Vassell remains on the sidelines with his own injury.
Sheffield Wednesday could welcome Fernando Forestieri back from his six-match ban while Massimo Luongo is also expected to be available. They will not be able to call on the services of injured defender Tom Lees however.
Betting
I have to say I’m not expecting a class here. I think this will be a hard fought contest where not much quarter is given by either side and as a result I’m finding it hard to make out a bet for the match. I’m not convinced by Cardiff at all and haven’t been at any stage of the season. I think more of Sheffield Wednesday but this is probably a game where they would welcome a point at the start of another hectic Championship week.
That probably all points to the draw being value and I certainly wouldn’t sway anyone from taking that opinion but I’m not a backer of the draw per se. The under would also be a popular pick but it is pretty tight on the price margin which isn’t ideal in such an unpredictable lead so rather than take something I’m not comfortable with I’ll sit this one out and keep my powder for the rest of the weekend.
Tips
No Bet
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