Play-off football comes thick and fast at this time of year as Sheffield Wednesday prepare to face Sunderland tonight.

The League One play-off semi-final second leg is set for a 7:45pm kick-off at Hillsborough this evening.

The Owls are looking to overturn a 1-0 deficit after the two sides met at the Stadium of Light last week, with Ross Stewart's goal on the brink of half-time enough to earn Sunderland the first-leg victory.

As a result of their defeat on Friday, only a win will be enough to ensure Sheffield Wednesday's season is not over when the whistle blows for 90 minutes.

With that being sad, here are three dilemmas facing Owls' boss Darren Moore ahead of the clash.

Josh Windass

One dilemma Darren Moore is facing is how to continue to best re-incorporate Josh Windass back into his Owls side.

Windass has four goals and two assists in nine League One appearances this season in what has been an injury-hit campaign.

The 28-year-0ld has been eased back in in their last three matches, including in the first leg of this tie.

With his sharpness and fitness increasing, he can perhaps manage more than the 34 minutes he played on Friday night.

Thus, figuring out how much Wednesday can lean on Windass for a good performance, and for how long, is a key consideration for Moore in the run up to the match.

Harlee Dean

Another player Moore must make a decision on ahead of the match is Harlee Dean.

 

 

Dean played 90 minutes against Sunderland on Friday night, but that was his first appearance for the club since picking up a calf injury last month.

Moore must decide whether or not two games in three days is too much for Dean considering he is only just returning from that injury, or whether or not the centre-back will be able to handle it.

The last thing Moore needs is Dean re-aggravating the injury and Wednesday both being without him for a potential final, and having to use one of their substitutions to replace him.

The best approach

Given that they are 1-0 down, it may be tempting for Moore to go all out to try and get on level terms as quickly as possible, and his approach is certainly something Moore must consider before this match.

We saw last night that MK Dons failed to overcome a deficit at home, albeit that was a 2-0 one, and you wonder whether Moore may set his side up to attack.

At the same time though, that approach would leave gaps and suddenly the Owls could find themselves even further behind.

It is a fine line, and Moore must tread it carefully as his side look to get back into this tie.