West Brom travel to Hillsborough on Saturday in their penultimate game of the regular Championship season.
Before Hull City beat Coventry City 3-2 on Wednesday night, it looked as though a play-off place was all but guaranteed for the Baggies.
However, even before that result, manager Carlos Corberan was in no mood to ease off in the last two games of the season.
West Brom were unfortunate to lose last time out, suffering a 2-1 defeat to league leaders Leicester City as they had three attempts cleared off the line.
Jed Wallace scored the goal that day, operating in the auxiliary centre-forward role that he has thrived in at times this campaign.
A win would effectively secure a spot in the top six for West Brom given their goal difference, but they will face a Sheffield Wednesday side desperately scrapping for Championship survival on Saturday.
West Brom face tricky Sheffield Wednesday test
Wednesday climbed out of the bottom three for the first time since August when they beat Blackburn Rovers 3-1 on Sunday.
Managed by the impressive 34-year-old Danny Rohl, the Owls would be 16th in the Championship if the league season started when the German took charge of the club on 13th October.
What makes this all the more remarkable is that this is Rohl’s first managerial job and Wednesday had suffered their worst ever start to a season prior to his arrival.
West Brom will have to be at their best or could be caught short against a team scrapping for every ball in their bid to stay in the division.
Whilst Corberan will be keen to win the game, he could also use the fixture as an opportunity to hand some minutes to players returning to fitness, such as Josh Maja and Matt Phillips.
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History on West Brom’s side v Sheffield Wednesday
The good news for West Brom is that this is a fixture they have dominated in recent history.
The Baggies have not lost against Saturday’s opponents since 2007; a 17-year run that should give them confidence.
To add to that, the midlands club are also unbeaten at Hillsborough since a year earlier, the last time they tasted defeat at the home of the Sheffield club coming in 2006.
Corberan’s side also won the reverse fixture.
The October affair ended in a 1-0 win courtesy of an early John Swift goal.
The scoreline did perhaps not reflect the relative ease of the game, given West Brom had a whopping 72% possession according to Sofascore.
That game was significant, as Wednesday sacked manager at the time Xisco Munoz in the aftermath of the defeat despite the Spaniard having only taken charge in late July.
A win will all secure West Brom’s play-off spot mathematically in what would represent a really positive campaign.