Macheda and Fryatt eager to make big impression

The spotlight will fall firmly on the strikers at Hillsborough today in the South Yorkshire derby.

In the blue corner is Matty Fryatt, making his Sheffield Wednesday debut after arriving on a month’s loan from Premier League side Hull City yesterday,

In the red corner is Federico Macheda, the 22-year-old who netted twice on his full Doncaster Rovers debut last week against Nottingham Forest after his arrival from champions Manchester United on a short-term deal.

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“He had a dream start really,” said Rovers manager Paul Dickov. “To come in on his full debut and get two goals was fantastic for him.

“That’s the quality he has got, he had two chances all game. People might say they were easy chances but the hardest thing is putting them in the back of the net.

“He’s very level-headed and determined to get his career back on track. He’s been disappointed how previous loan moves have worked out by not getting the game-time he thought he was going to get.”

Dave Jones tried to take Macheda to Hillsborough, but the in-demand striker opted for the Keepmoat Stadium instead.

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“Not just Sheffield Wednesday, there were a lot of clubs that wanted his signature,” said Dickov. “He felt it was the right move, the right style to suit his game.”

Doncaster have a good record against Wednesday, Billy Sharp inspiring Rovers to do the double over the Owls the last season they were both in the Championship in 2009-10. Dickov is relishing going to Hillsborough for what is due to be Wednesday’s biggest home crowd of the season so far.

“It’s a fantastic game for us. Hillsborough is a stadium I have always enjoyed going to,” he said.

“The fans are fantastic, a big pitch and a lot of history. If you can’t enjoy going there and playing football there’s something wrong. We know it’s going to be a really tough game, a great atmosphere, but we want to embrace that.”

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Fryatt, the former Walsall and Leicester City striker – in the last year of his contract at the KC Stadium – is looking to kickstart his career after an Achilles injury wrecked his season last year.

He has played just two cup games for Hull this term, and recently rejected a loan move to Barnsley.

“I’m pleased to bring another striker to the club. We have been watching and waiting for the time that Hull said Matty could go out on loan,” said Owls boss Dave Jones.

“We’ve been keeping tabs on him and we’re delighted we finally got the nod. He has a great strike record and we feel he will bring us something different that we haven’t got and we’re obviously hoping that he will bring us goals.”