Big change to Sheffield Wednesday v Sheffield United has emerged less than 48 hours before kick-off | OneFootball

The 'man in the middle' for Sunday's Steel City clash at Hillsborough has now changed

A big change has been made ahead of the upcoming Steel City derby between Sheffield Wednesday and Sheffield United at Hillsborough on Sunday lunchtime.

It has emerged that David Webb will now be the 'man in the middle' for the hotly-contested clash in S6 over the initially appointed Bobby Madley, as Championship football returns to the agenda this weekend following the recent two-week gap in the EFL schedule as a result of the final international break in the calendar year.

As such, both Sheffield clubs will be hoping to build any form of momentum as they find themselves in the relegation zone heading into Sunday's fixture, albeit the Owls are still 14 points behind their cross-city rivals after being hit with a 12-point deduction as a result of entering administration on October 24th.

Whilst emotion and passion are two clear buzzwords synonymous with fixtures of this magnitude, the aforementioned set of circumstances at Hillsborough following the departure of controversial former owner, Dejphon Chansiri, which was well-celebrated, will only add to the intense atmosphere which will be felt by both Henrik Pedersen and Chris Wilder on the respective touchlines, as well as both sets of players desperate to achieve short-term bragging rights.

Major change made ahead of first Sheffield Wednesday, Sheffield United, Steel City showdown in the Championship season

Given the hostility which also surrounds high-profile encounters, it is no surprise when a senior and experienced referee is appointed to take charge of proceedings by the Premier Game Match Officials (PGMO), a bracket which the aforementioned Madley certainly falls under, having refereed at Premier League level between 2013 and 2018, and has done so on the EFL circuit for the past 15 years.

As such, the 40-year-old, who hails from nearby Wakefield, was selected as the main official for the upcoming clash, with David Williams and Conor Brown initially appointed as those running the lines, with the aforementioned Webb set to take up position as the fourth official.

However, some 48 hours before kick-off at Hillsborough, an important change to such a lineup has been made, as per a report from local publication, the Sheffield Star. This has seen Webb promoted to referee, whilst Oliver Langford will replace the long-standing EFL referee as the man overseeing matters on the touchline between the two managers.

No clear indication behind the aforementioned alterations has been made, although such a scenario could be down to an injury or a personal conflict of interest.

As previously mentioned, Madley does hail from just north of South Yorkshire's main city, but supports neither the Owls nor the Blades, with it being well-documented that he follows the two clubs' local rivals and League One promotion hopefuls, Huddersfield Town.

His replacement, Webb, is yet to oversee a Steel City derby in his career, but has, rather ironically, taken charge of 27 matches apiece involving Wednesday or United.

The Lancastrian recently oversaw Wilder's side's 3-1 victory over Blackburn Rovers at Ewood Park on October 21, during which only two cautions were brandished.

Meanwhile, his last involvement as the main official in a game concerning the blue half of Sheffield came in January, where the Owls were defeated 3-0 by Leeds United at Elland Road.

Webb has taken charge of 11 Championship and EFL Cup matches so far this season, issuing 28 yellow cards, with his solitary red card going the way of then-West Bromwich Albion defender Darnell Furlong against Blackburn on the opening day of the campaign.

Sheffield Wednesday and Sheffield United's preparation will not be impacted by refereeing change

Whilst it is an important change that has been made, the truth of the matter is neither Wednesday nor United's pre-match preparation will have been impacted by such developments.

With Owls supporters already resigned to a season in League One next term as a result of off-pitch circumstances, the chance to get one over on their arch rivals for the first time in 13 years would only add to the feel-good factor which has surrounded Hillsborough in recent weeks.

However, Wilder, who is yet to stop the rot which set in at Bramall Lane over the summer and throughout Ruben Selles' six-game tenure, boasts an unbeaten record in this fixture, which included two 1-0 victories last season courtesy of Tyrese Campbell and Rhian Brewster.