Rotherham take on Sheffield Wednesday this evening gunning
for revenge after last season's agonising defeat.
Although both managers have gone to the cliché book and said
that form goes out of the window in derbies, it will not all be blood and
thunder.
Here we look at the key battles which could go some way to
deciding the outcome of the game.
Harry Toffolo v Jack Hunt
It's the battle of the on-loan Premier League loanees and
both full-backs will be keen to ensure they spend most of their evening in the
opposition half. Toffolo showed himself to be a talented player in his debut
against Reading on Tuesday, performing both facets of the game well. Jack Hunt
needs no introduction to Millers fans after his loan stint last season and his
threat is making surging runs down the right. If the Millers can get on top and
Toffolo makes Hunt do more defending than attacking it could go a long way to
stifling Wednesday.
Tom Thorpe or Richie Smallwood v Fernando Forestieri
Fernando Forestieri has been a key component of Wednesday's
recent run of form, making match-defining contributions against both Preston
and Hull. The former Watford man - if fit - is likely to play off either Atdhe
Nuhiu or Lucas Joao, finding pockets of space to pick up the ball. Who
Rotherham play as their sitting midfielder remains to be seen, but whether it
is Tom Thorpe or Richie Smallwood one of their biggest jobs will to be neutralise the threat caused by the dimunitive Italian as he is vital to their attacking
verve.
Jonson Clarke-Harris v Tom Lees
Jonson Clarke-Harris has been Rotherham's beacon of light over the first two months of the campaign, but he is without a goal in five games and teams have marked his card. He will be coming up against another exceptional young player in Tom Lees, who has been a solid performer for Wednesday ever since his move to Hillsborough last summer. Lees is particularly exceptional in the air, something that Clarke-Harris has plenty to work on, but where the striker may get the upper hand is with his powerful runs down the channel. He's due a goal and if he gets the better of Lees he will make his night a lot easier.
The rest v Kieren Westwood
Rotherham's seven minutes of agony against Wednesday last season would have been avoided had it not been for Kieren Westwood making a number of saves to keep his side in it before the late drama. The former Sunderland keeper has performed heroics on a number of occasions over the last year and with Rotherham's failure to regularly put chances away over the same period, they can ill-afford to see Westwood pull off a string of fine saves. If they get a chance where there's only him to beat, they have to make sure he's bending his back to pick it out of the back of the net.
