Adriano Basso on how he ended up at Sheffield Wednesday, what he’s told Owls’ goalkeepers and why the trip to Wales is so important

Basso, who hails from the Brazilian city of Jundiaí, really made his name in England whilst playing for Bristol City, where he played 165 league games for the Robins and played his part in their 2008 promotion into the Championship.

But City weren’t his only club in the UK, playing for the likes of Woking, Hull City and FC United of Manchester over the course of his career after his decision to leave his home nation back in the mid-2000s.

As a coach, Basso has worked at Hartlepool United, Nuneaton Borough and – most recently – Grantham Town, and will certainly bring something fresh to the Wednesday setup after Darren Moore’s decision to bring him into the setup for 2021/22.

The 46-year-old is no stranger to Sheffield having made the trip to Hillsborough a couple of times with the Robins - and he kept a clean sheet on both occasions!

Now, as he gets to grips with a new environment, the ‘keeper coach says he’s looking forward to getting stuck in.

Speaking to the club’s official YouTube channel, Basso said, “I’m very delighted and very happy to have the opportunity to come here… It’s a great club, a great place, with great staff and great people - I’m very, very happy. I believe that we do, we’ll come out with good results and success.

“A part of that is to face the challenge, and overcome it… And the opportunity to succeed as well. This is a massive club with a big history behind it, but we’re here to create a new chapter here. That’s something that brought me here – and I’m looking forward to achieving something with the club. And making new history here.”

But how did the move come about? It turns out that Moore and Basso have something else in common other than their football values, with the duo growing closer because of their shared faith.

He explained, “I’ve known Darren for a long time from when we played against each other, but we also have a group where we meet as Christians in sport.. I told him my situation, and when he felt that he needed something then he approached me and we discussed things. I told him my ambitions, what I wanted to achieve, and it was the same as what he wants.”

And he’s wasted no time, getting to work at Middlewood Road on Friday as players returned for the start of preseason – though he joked that the only testing he was interested in was the jumping as he met the likes of Joe Wildsmith and Cameron Dawson for the first time.

“We’ve been doing testing,” he said when asked about the first day back. “It dictates what we need for the future. Obviously all the professionals know that, and I’m more focused on the goalkeepers, so the only tests I really follow are the jumping ones! It’s all needed though, to know where we are and how we’re going to take things into the preseason and further.

“It was a great experience with them, they’re very nice guys, and they have a bright future. They’re very humble people, who are willing to work hard. I’ve been discussing with them some things that we plan to do – and how our mentality has to be when approaching every day training, and what we want to achieve in the season. They look to me very positive, and I believe with hard work and strong belief in ourselves then we can achieve what we plan to.

“I have met the goalkeepers and they are all very nice guys, very humble people and willing to work hard… I have spoken to them about what we are going to do and what we’re going to achieve, and they are looking forward to it.”

He won’t be taking it easy on them, though. And promises an intense period in Wales for preseason, something that he thinks can lay the groundwork for success going forward.

Speaking to the club, he continued, “It’ll be very intensive training, the preparation… The way you prepare yourself is vital, because that will determine how far you’re going to go – so the starting point is very, very important. All things have to be done with the right attitude.

“One of the things I’ve told them is to clear their minds of everything that’s happened in the past in terms of both good and bad, because they don’t determine their future. For example, my reputation brought me here, but what will keep me here is the work that I do… These 10 days will be very good for us.”

They’ll be good, and there’s plenty of work to do, but Basso is already acquainted with what to expect from his first game on the bench at Hillsborough – and he knows all about what Wednesdayites can bring to the party.

“I felt a lot of pressure, because the supporters are very good… I think I did well though, probably I was Man of the Match when I played! It’s a good place to play, a good place to be, and each time in a season when you talk about playing Sheffield Wednesday it was always a tough game – the club has a high standard, and we always knew it was going to be a tough game.”

High standards, tough games, that’ll all sound good to Sheffield Wednesday fans – and hopefully Basso’s record of being involved in clean sheets at Hillsborough can continue for much longer...

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