Preview: Sheffield Wednesday vs Charlton Athletic - prediction, team news, lineups

With a chance to all but guarantee their Championship safety, Charlton Athletic will head to Hillsborough to take on Sheffield Wednesday on Saturday.

The visitors lead the bottom three in the Championship table by four spots and five points with four games remaining, while their hosts are confined to relegation and a 24th-placed finish due to their struggles this term.

Match preview

Sheffield Wednesday head into their penultimate home game of the Championship season on Saturday with their impending drop to League One looming, capping off a difficult season on and off the pitch.

They faced a near impossible task from the start due to financial issues and a threadbare squad, with any survival hopes seen off by entering administration in October, leading the Owls to be hit by deductions totalling 18 points.

With four games remaining, they now sit on -4 points, failing to overcome those deductions, with their only league victory all term coming in September and having since gone on a football league record long winless run of 36 games, while they have conceded a league-high tally of 82 goals and scored a league-low 25.

Henrik Pedersen's side do find themselves with some optimism for the future, though, having lifted spirits with a pair of creditable draws in the last two outings, firstly being held late on to a 1-1 draw by Leicester City having led early through Jerry Yates before visiting league leaders Coventry City on Saturday and denying the hosts the confirmation of their promotion having kept the game goalless.

Now facing the last four games before their drop, with a switch to new ownership and an exit from administration seemingly nearing, Sheffield Wednesday will bid to build on those positive results and get within touching distance of escaping negative points with a first home league win of the season on Saturday.

Their visitors, meanwhile, head to South Yorkshire in search of a return to winning ways which would all but confirm their second-tier status for next season.

After winning promotion from League One last time around, Charlton Athletic have experienced a mixed Championship campaign but still find themselves just about in the fight for survival, having earned 49 points from their 42 games to sit 18th.

The Addicks looked safe with back-to-back 1-0 wins over Birmingham City and Middlesbrough in mid-March, but they have since gone winless in five games while only adding two points to their tally, beginning with a draw against strugglers Oxford United and a pair of consecutive defeats.

Then on the back of an away draw against Watford on Easter Monday, Nathan Jones hosted Preston North End on Saturday and again failed to move out of reach of the drop zone, as they fell to a 2-1 defeat at the Valley despite leading through Joe Rankin-Costello with Lewis Dobbin levelling the scores before Brad Potts sealed all three goals for the visitors in the second half.

Now boasting a five-point lead over the bottom three with four games remaining, Charlton Athletic head to Hillsborough knowing a first win in six games would be almost enough to secure their Championship spot next season.

Sheffield Wednesday Championship form:

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Charlton Athletic Championship form:

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Team News

Sheffield Wednesday remain without Murphy Cooper, Liam Cooper, Di'Shon Bernard, Ernie Weaver, Ike Ugbo and George Brown on Saturday due to ongoing injuries.

The Owls may be unchanged from the goalless draw with Coventry City, although full-back Tayo Adaramola is an injury doubt after coming off in that game, and if he is not deemed fit to feature, Cole McGhee may take his spot at the back.

Marvelous Nakamba is in contention for a midfield spot having featured off the bench last weekend, while Yates will lead their attack having netted four goals since his January loan arrival.

Charlton Athletic are still unable to call on first-choice goalkeeper Thomas Kaminski, who is confined to the treatment room alongside Josh Edwards and Collins Sichenje, while Conor Coady also missed last week's defeat to Preston.

Harvey Knibbs has also been sidelined recently, although there remains competition for midfield and attacking spots with the likes of Luke Berry and Conor Coventry fighting for returns to the starting XI.

Charlie Kelman, Matt Godden and Miles Leaburn will also compete for spots up front, although Jones has preferred Lyndon Dykes in recent weeks with the Scottish international having netted three league goals since his January arrival.

Sheffield Wednesday possible starting lineup:

Charles; Palmer, Otegbayo, McGhee; Fusire, Ingelsson, Chalobah, Heskey, M Lowe; J Lowe, Yates

Charlton Athletic possible starting lineup:

Mannion; Ramsay, Jones, Bell; Carey, Docherty, Rankin-Costello, Chambers; Berry, Campbell; Kelman

We say: Sheffield Wednesday 0-1 Charlton Athletic

Sheffield Wednesday have shown fight in abundance in recent weeks to play out back-to-back draws despite their struggles, but Charlton Athletic head to the basement side needing to take their chance to secure Championship status and we back them to get over the line at Hillsborough.

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