Both Barnsley and Stoke City will be looking to bounce back from Championship defeats when they lock horns at Oakwell on Tuesday evening.
Relegation-threatened Barnsley will enter the contest off the back of a 2-0 loss at Derby County on Saturday, while Stoke suffered a 1-0 home defeat to Blackpool on the same afternoon.
Match preview
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Barnsley had won three of their four Championship matches ahead of their trip to Derby on Saturday, which would have left them full of confidence, but the Reds suffered a 2-0 defeat to their fellow relegation candidates.
Ravel Morrison netted a brace for the Rams at Pride Park, with the result leaving Barnsley in 23rd position in the table, boasting 23 points from their 34 matches in 2021-22.
The Tykes are just six points from the safety of 21st position with a game in hand, though, and they still have more than enough time to escape the relegation zone; Tuesday's match will mark the first of three home fixtures in succession, also welcoming Fulham and Bristol City on March 12 and March 15 respectively.
Poya Asbaghi's side have the worst home record in the Championship this season, picking up just 16 points from their 16 matches, scoring just 12 times in the process.
Barnsley are unbeaten in their last three matches against Stoke, though, including a 2-0 victory when the two teams locked horns for the corresponding fixture last term.
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Stoke, meanwhile, will enter Tuesday's contest off the back of a 1-0 home defeat to Blackpool on Saturday, with Josh Bowler netting late to secure all three points for the visitors.
The Potters are currently 15th in the Championship table, boasting 44 points from their 34 matches, which has left them 20 points clear of the relegation zone and 11 points off the top six.
It is not impossible for Stoke to make the playoffs this season, as they have games in hand on a number of the teams above them, but it would take a remarkable run of form over the coming weeks to move Michael O'Neill's side towards the top six.
Stoke have struggled for consistency on their travels in the league this season, winning five, drawing four and losing seven of their 16 matches to collect 19 points.
O'Neill's side have actually now lost each of their last four matches in all competitions, meanwhile, including a 2-1 defeat to Crystal Palace in the FA Cup at the start of the month, with their last victory in the Championship coming at home to Swansea City on February 8.
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Team News
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Barnsley will again be missing Aaron Leya Iseka, Victor Adeboyejo and Cauley Woodrow on Tuesday evening through injury, but the home side do not have any fresh fitness concerns.
Head coach Asbaghi is expected to resist the temptation to make wholesale changes to the side that started the defeat to Derby, particularly as recent performances have been impressive.
There could be an alteration in the middle of midfield, though, with Josh Benson potentially earning a start, while Amine Bassi will continue in the number 10 position for the home side.
As for Stoke, Harry Souttar and Abdallah Sima will miss the game through injury, while Liam Moore is a doubt due to the problem that he picked up against Blackpool on Saturday.
Moore's expected absence will open the door for Ben Wilmot to start in a back three, but it could otherwise be the same XI that took to the field last time out.
O'Neill does have plenty of options for change in the final third, though, with Tyrese Campbell and Steven Fletcher both pushing for spots in the starting side on Tuesday night.
Barnsley possible starting lineup:
Collins; Brittain, Helik, Andersen, Vita; Benson, Wolfe; Styles, Bassi, Quina; Morris
Stoke City possible starting lineup:
Bonham; Wilmot, Jagielka, Harwood-Bellis; Smith, Sawyers, Baker, Vrancic, Tymon; Powell, Maja
We say: Barnsley 1-1 Stoke City
Both teams will view this match as the ideal chance to return to winning ways, but we are struggling to see past a draw on Tuesday evening. The two sides played out a 1-1 when they locked horns in the reverse match back in September, and we are backing the same scoreline to occur in this contest.
Top tip
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Barnsley win with a probability of 36.34%. A win for Stoke City had a probability of 35.97% and a draw had a probability of 27.7%.
The most likely scoreline for a Barnsley win was 1-0 with a probability of 10.95%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-1 (7.85%) and 2-0 (6.58%). The likeliest Stoke City win was 0-1 (10.88%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (13.07%). The actual scoreline of 1-1 was predicted with a 13.1% likelihood. Our team at Sports Mole correctly predicted a 1-1 draw for this match.
