Rotherham vs Barnsley
English League Championship
Date: Saturday, 28th January 2017
Kick off at 15:00 UK / 16:00 CET
Venue: New York Stadium, Rotherham.
Rotherham will monitor the fitness of Joe Newell ahead of the South Yorkshire derby with Barnsley at New York Stadium.
The midfielder pulled out of the 4-0 defeat at Newcastle last week after feeling a groin injury in the warm-up but the Millers hope he will be fit.
Goalkeeper Lewis Price also missed the St James' Park clash for family reasons and he should be back in the squad while Danny Ward (back) should also be involved.
That's where the good news ends, though, as Lee Frecklington (ankle), Kirk Broadfoot (back), Lee Camp (knee), Jonson Clarke-Harris (knee) and Dexter Blackstock (hamstring) all occupy the treatment room.
Barnsley head coach Paul Heckingbottom will have to cope without midfielder Conor Hourihane and defender James Bree after the pair joined Championship rivals Aston Villa.
Hourihane signed a three-and-a-half year deal for an undisclosed fee on Thursday, the day after Bree made the move to Villa Park after agreeing a four-and-a-half year contract.
Heckingbottom at least has no new injury concerns and can call on new signing Matty James after the midfielder joined the Reds on loan from Premier League champions Leicester.
Midfielder Marley Watkins, who has scored six goals in the league this season, handed in a transfer request this week that the club have rejected.
Rotherham vs Barnsley: Head-to-head stats
It resulted in a 4-0 win for Barnsley when they met Rotherham for the reverse fixture of the corresponding fixture on September 2016. This was their first competitive meeting since 2005.
Barnsley are unbeaten in their last 7 meetings against Rotherham with 4 wins and 3 draws.
Rotherham vs Barnsley: Prediction
Rotherham’s best results in recent weeks have come at home, but Barnsley are an equally capable team while playing on the road. Therefore, an away win is very much on the cards especially when Barnsley have a strong h2h record over their opponents.
The home team can be adventurous with a heavy focus on attack and therefore we can expect a high scoring affair. Both teams to score is also an alternate option for this fixture.
Rotherham vs Barnsley: Bet Tips
FT – Over 3.5 goals at odds of 2.90 (19/10)
Barnsley to win at the odds of 2.45 (16/11).
