The international break will have given manager Stuart Gray an opportunity to ponder the form of Sheffield Wednesday, currently sitting in ninth place.

A strong start to the season saw two wins and two draws in the opening four matches, before a loss to Nottingham Forest ended their unbeaten run. The club currently boast the joint best defensive record in the Championship (alongside Middlesbrough), only conceding eight goals in 11 matches.

However, the Owls are without either a win or a clean sheet in their last three games and have only recorded one league win at home all season; a 1-0 victory over Reading in September. In addition to their lack of wins at Hillsborough, Wednesday have only managed three goals in front of their own fans; one each against Ipswich, Millwall and Reading.

Prior to the two-week international break Sheffield Wednesday picked up a hard-fought 1-1 draw at Elland Road against Yorkshire rivals Leeds United.

The side’s away form has been key to their position in the table, with 11 points collected from a possible 18. In contrast, Wednesday’s 2013/14 season saw them only manage four away league wins all season; only one more than they have recorded already in this campaign.

Outside of the league, Wednesday managed to get to the third round of the League Cup, with wins over Notts County and Burnley before a 7-0 loss to Manchester City halted their progress. The loss to City saw all seven goals scored in the second half and is the biggest winning margin in the tournament since 2002.

The recent international fixtures saw call-ups for two Wednesday players; Scottish attacker Stevie May and goalkeeper Kieren Westwood from the Republic of Ireland. Both players, who joined the club in the summer, missed out on the opportunity to represent their countries in the 2016 European Championship qualifiers.

May, who joined the club from St Johnstone in August for an undisclosed fee has scored three league goals; making him the club’s joint-top league goalscorer, alongside fellow striker Atdhe Nuhiu – who also has two goals in the League Cup. Last season’s top scorer Chris Maguire has two goals to his name.

Wednesday will be hoping to avoid a hattrick of 4-1 defeats against Watford at home, following heavy losses in the 2012/13 and 2013/14 Championship seasons.

Despite their recent drubbings against the Hornets at Hillsborough, the Owls were able to record a 1-0 victory at Vicarage Road in December of last year; only their second win at the ground in the 21st century and the result which spelled the end for Gianfranco Zola as head coach.

In team news, Gray will have the majority of his squad available for selection, with only defender Kamil Zayatte (hamstring) and forward Caolan Lavery (knee) ruled out.

Sheffield Wednesday Starting XI vs Leeds United (4/10/14): Westwood; Palmer, Lees, Loovens, Mattock; Maguire, Semedo, Lee, Maghoma; Nuhiu, May.