Ryan Lowe is preparing his Preston North End side to expect the unexpected this weekend when they take on Sheffield Wednesday.
The newly-promoted Owls have come out on the wrong side of 2-1 and 4-2 scorelines so far in their first season back in the Championship.
North End will be taking no notice of those results, though, especially given that Wednesday are under new management in Xisco Muñoz, so the Spaniard may still be experimenting to get things right.
Ryan said: “Sometimes people can make four or five changes in trying to find that formula.
“I don’t know whether their manager’s trying to do that; we won’t know until Saturday.
“The fact of the matter is when you’ve lost a couple of games you’re trying to juggle one or two things to try and get players in the team maybe or change formation.
“So it’s difficult but we’ve just got to make sure it’s about what we do and pay them the respect we do for every football club and put a gameplan together which hopefully works.”
It’ll be a return to Hillsborough this weekend for the North End gaffer, with Ryan having played for the Yorkshire outfit in the early 2010s.
The former striker enjoyed a positive year with the Owls as he was part of the side which finished second in League One to seal promotion to the second tier during the 2011/12 season.
“It was a fantastic time,” he said. “I had a great relationship with the fans, it’s a fantastic football club, and for now they certainly deserve to be in the Championship.
“Can they go on to bigger and better? I’m sure they can at one point because it’s a fantastic club.
“But it’s not about me. I’m going back there with my team to put on a show and get a result.
“I’m sure Sheffield Wednesday will be trying to do the same thing, so allegiances aside it’s about me going there as the manager of Preston North End wanting to get the best for my team.”
PNE will head to Sheffield after a positive start to the league campaign which has seen the Lilywhites draw at Ashton Gate against Bristol City and defeat Sunderland on home turf.
Ryan said: “I think the performance away from home at Bristol City was fantastic, especially in the second half, and then the performance last Saturday at home to Sunderland who are expected to be up there. They’re a good team, very intricate.
“We’re coming up against a different team now in Sheffield Wednesday who play a different way and a different style.
“I think every week you’re coming up against someone a little bit different.
“I’m definitely pleased with the four points but we want to continue that. We want to set ourselves a small target of a points tally to get ourselves to the international break, and if we can do that and get them points then we’ll be really pleased.”