Sheffield Wednesday v Sunderland

Sheffield Wednesday vs Sunderland Preview

The Friday night offering in the English Championship features this upcoming encounter between Sheffield Wednesday and Sunderland with both sides experiencing vastly different fortunes so far in this new second tier season.

It's been a rude awakening for Sheffield Wednesday upon their return to the Championship after a two-year absence as The Owls sit bottom of the Championship table with just two points to their name from a possible 24 on offer thanks to picking up points in draws with Leeds United and Middlesbrough.

That has been as good as it has got though so far in this new campaign as Sheffield Wednesday have also been handed no fewer than six defeats in their opening eight league games, three of which have been inflicted upon Xisco Munoz's side on home soil at Hillsborough.

Home defeats to Southampton, Preston NE and Ipswich Town will have done little for The Owls' morale and the hosts face another tough night at the office on Friday when Sunderland come to town, especially as Sheffield Wednesday have managed to capture just two wins from their previous 13 home games overall in the Championship.

Sunderland by contrast occupy a place in the upper echelons of the Championship table as the Black Cats sit in fifth spot ahead of Friday night's clash at Hillsborough where the north-east club will be eager to return to winning ways after suffering a surprise 1-0 defeat at home to Cardiff City last Sunday.

After a sticky start to this new Championship season which saw Tony Mowbray's side slip to early back-to-back defeats at the hands of Ipswich Town and Preston NE, the Black Cats staged an impressive recovery which saw Sunderland embark upon a five-match unbeaten sequence which consisted of four wins and a draw.

Victories against the likes of Rotherham United 2-1, Southampton 5-0, QPR 3-1 and Blackburn Rovers 3-1, the latter two wins being achieved on their travels, should still give Sunderland plenty of reasons to feel upbeat about their chances of making a swift return to the winning circle on Friday night.

In addition, goals also look likely to feature as six of Sunderland's eight league matches to date have resulted in Over 2.5 goals and given Sheffield Wednesday's shaky defensive unit, further goals look set to unfold at Hillsborough.

Sheffield Wednesday v Sunderland Verdict

Sheffield Wednesday look particularly vulnerable at the moment in these early weeks of this new Championship season and the club may well be wishing they hadn't parted ways with former manager, Darren Moore, who had previously guided The Owls to promotion from League One at the end of last season.

Sunderland therefore stand a decent chance of returning to winning ways here while goals should also make an appearance.

Therefore, our main bet will be Over 2.5 goals @ 1.90

Other side bets worth considering:

Sunderland win @ 2.25

Correct score: Sunderland 2-1 @ 9.00