The Owls, under manager Brian Laws kick started the campaign with a 2-2 draw at home to Barnsley in the South Yorkshire Derby; though two-nil ahead at the break the home side somehow managed to throw away what looked like a likely lead.
They secured a place in round two of the Carling Cup after defeating Rochdale (3-0) at Hillsborough, but back in the Championship a James O'Connor goal couldn't hand them victory at Peterborough United (1-1), they then lost 1-0 at Newcastle United before a Marcus Tudgay goal helped them along in a 4-0 win over Scunthorpe United for their first league win of the season.
Striker Francis Jeffers was handed his marching orders after an alleged assault against his opponent against Port Vale in the
League Cup; Vale - who knocked the Blades out of the same competition in the previous round added to their route with a 2-0 win.
The S6 side then added results against Plymouth Argyle (won 3-1), Nottingham Forest (drew 1-1) and Middlesbrough (lost 3-1) to land themselves 11th in the table before the Steel City encounter at Bramall Lane.
During their 1-1 draw with Nottingham Forest last Saturday the Owls saw duo Richard Wood (groin) and Marcus Tudgay (back) leave the field early due to their respected injuries; the latter returned the following fixture and played the full 90 minutes in their 3-1 home defeat to Middlesbrough - Mark Beevers took his place.
However shortly before the break Beevers himself was forced to leave the field, having been stretched off with fellow defender Richards Hinds filling in at full-back position.
Former Everton and Arsenal forward Francis Jeffers is expected to be made available for the Steel City Derby at Bramall Lane; the striker, whom was handed a straight red card in the 2-0 defeat at Port Vale and served his suspension during the last three fixtures.
However due to unpopularity with the fans he is unlikely to be handed a starting eleven place; with Akpo Sodje who should be fit
could start alongside Marcus Tudgay.
Possible Owls Line-Up: Lee Grant, Darren Purse, Richard Hinds, Tommy Spurr, Lewis Buxton, Michael Gray, James O'Connor, Darren Potter, Jermaine Johnson, Luke Varney, Marcus Tudgay.
| Grant | |||
| Hinds | Purse (c) | Spurr | Buxton |
| Gray | O'Connor | Potter | Johnson |
| Varney | Tudgay | ||
Blades-Mad Prediction: Sheffield United 2-1 Sheffield Wednesday
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:: Statistics ::
For Head to Head statistics please click here.
Last 10 Games... Home & Away
| Season | Date | Home | Score | Away | Competition |
| 2008/2009 | Sat 07 Feb | Sheff. Utd. | 1 - 2 | Sheff. Wed. | Championship |
| Sun 19 Oct | Sheff. Wed. | 1 - 0 | Sheff. Utd. | Championship | |
| 2007/2008 | Tue 08 Apr | Sheff. Utd. | 2 - 2 | Sheff. Wed. | Championship |
| Sat 19 Jan | Sheff. Wed. | 2 - 0 | Sheff. Utd. | Championship | |
| 2005/2006 | Sat 18 Feb | Sheff. Wed. | 1 - 2 | Sheff. Utd. | Championship |
| Sat 03 Dec | Sheff. Utd. | 1 - 0 | Sheff. Wed. | Championship | |
| 2002/2003 | Fri 17 Jan | Sheff. Utd. | 3 - 1 | Sheff. Wed. | League Division One |
| Sun 01 Sep | Sheff. Wed. | 2 - 0 | Sheff. Utd. | League Division One | |
| 2001/2002 | Tue 29 Jan | Sheff. Utd. | 0 - 0 | Sheff. Wed. | League Division One |
| Sun 07 Oct | Sheff. Wed. | 0 - 0 | Sheff. Utd. | League Division One |
| Head to Head Statistics... | Goals | |||||
| Venue | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | For | Against |
| Home | 61 | 26 | 22 | 13 | 95 | 68 |
| Away | 61 | 18 | 16 | 27 | 73 | 92 |
Total | 122 | 44 | 38 | 41 | 169 | 162 |
* Statistics correct up to and including 01/08/2009
:: Match Officials ::
Referee: Alan Wiley
Assistants: A. Garratt & A. Halliday
Fourth Official: K. Stroud