MK Dons head into Saturday's League One fixture against Sheffield Wednesday knowing that they could take another step towards promotion.
As it stands, the home side hold a three-point advantage over Rotherham United, who possess a game in hand, while Wednesday are fifth and require all three points to strengthen their own effort to return to the Championship.
Match preview
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When Russell Martin made the decision to leave for Swansea City, MK Dons did not come under immediate consideration for promotion, particularly after a 13th-placed finish last season.
However, Liam Manning has transformed this team into contenders for another stint in the Championship, a 15-match unbeaten streak capitalising on the recent struggles of Rotherham.
Having played a game fewer, Rotherham's fate remains in their own hands, but all of the momentum is with MK Dons after prevailing in numerous close matches, relishing their tag of underdogs for the title.
Only claiming a 1-1 draw at rivals AFC Wimbledon last time out was naturally a blow, although it felt like a point gained with Troy Parrott's equaliser coming 10 minutes from time.
The away form of Manning's side has been the difference maker so far, but it should not be ignored that they are currently on a seven-match undefeated streak on familiar territory.
MK Dons are not the only team in League One on a spell of excellent form with opponents Sheffield Wednesday having gone six matches without suffering a defeat.
With three draws coming during that period, Darren Moore's team are now focused on achieving a playoff spot over the top two, even if success at the weekend will leave them seven points adrift of their hosts with a game in hand.
The Owls recently benefitted from a last-minute goal to see off AFC Wimbledon, but an effort at the same stage undone their hard work against Bolton Wanderers last time out, ultimately having to settle for a share of the spoils.
The goals continue to be shared around this squad, leading marksman Lee Gregory becoming the first player to reach double figures with two strikes from his last three appearances.
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Team News
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After witnessing his attack misfire against Wimbledon for large parts of last weekend's game, Manning could opt to bring in at least one fresh face.
The most likely change is Mohamed Eisa being preferred to Connor Wickham, but Theo Corbeanu will also be hopeful of a recall in a wide area.
Moore could make an alteration in the final third with either Callum Paterson or Saido Berahino in line to replace Nathaniel Mendez-Laing.
Barring any fitness issues, the remainder of the Wednesday XI could stay the same, with Dominic Iorfa being named on the substitutes' bench.
Josh Windass is one of several players who is still out of contention through injury.
MK Dons possible starting lineup:
Cumming; O'Hora, Darling, Lewington; Hayden, Coventry, McEachran, Harvie; Twine, Eisa, Parrott
Sheffield Wednesday possible starting lineup:
Peacock-Farrell; Storey, Dean, Hutchinson; Hunt, Byers, Bannan, Luongo, Johnson; Gregory, Paterson
We say: MK Dons 1-1 Sheffield Wednesday
With each club on lengthy unbeaten streaks, it is difficult to predict a winner with any great certainty. All things considered, a highly-competitive draw appears to be the most likely outcome, that result having the potential to hinder their respective promotion bids rather than help it.
Darren Plant
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 MK Dons win with a probability of 45.45%. A win for Sheffield Wednesday had a probability of 28.67% and a draw had a probability of 25.9%.
The most likely scoreline for a MK Dons win was 1-0 with a probability of 10.97%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-1 (9.11%) and 2-0 (8.13%). The likeliest Sheffield Wednesday win was 0-1 (8.31%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (12.3%). The actual scoreline of 2-3 was predicted with a 1.9% likelihood.
