Des Walker has expressed the need for patience at Sheffield Wednesday.

Sheffield Wednesday are in the embryonic stages of a mission to return to the club to its former glories - and are re-embracing the heroes that provided them.

The mood of the club has hurtled north since the desperate difficulties experienced over the last couple of years under the ownership of ousted chairman Dejphon Chansiri. With the dawn of ventures such as the Hirsty’s Social hospitality offering a clear signal towards their intention to welcome legendary figures back into the fold, figures such as Des Walker can expect a warm welcome to Hillsborough going forward.

The Owls are sat second in the early stage table having lost just one of their seven opening matches. Fanbase debate is split as to whether, even after a summer of mass change, the performances are matching up with what can be expected after back-to-back goalless draws at Hillsborough in the league.

In an interview for The Star conducted via Power Up Gaming, 59-cap England legend Walker expressed the value in battling to points even when performances are not as fluent as you’d like - and expressed the virtue of patience while things are being put together. “As long as they can keep themselves around the top few, they’re in a good position,” he said.

“It’s such a long season. You’re not necessarily going to stay at the top for the whole campaign and you’re not going to play great football for the whole season. You’ll have periods of good form, but it’s about consistency.

“If you can’t win, don’t lose. Steal a point here and a point there, then hopefully you’ll put together winning runs and cement yourself near the top. There’s definitely no panic. They’ve started reasonably well and put themselves in contention. At this stage of the season, that’s all you can really do. You can’t win anything yet — you can only keep yourself in the mix.”

Several iconic figures have been welcomed back to the club already this season as Wednesday look to get further back in touch with its history and heritage. “It’s a fantastic club and it’s dear to my heart,” Walker said. “I’ve gone back over the years and watched them play, and every time I visit Sheffield people receive me really well and make me feel comfortable.

“It’s a special club to me because I had eight fantastic years there and really enjoyed it. The fans, the club and everyone connected with it made it a really enjoyable experience. Obviously we went down and the last couple of years tainted it a little bit because that probably started the slide towards where the club eventually ended up. But the club itself was fantastic.”