Garry Monk on what the likes of Matt Penney must do to get back into his Sheffield Wednesday reckoning

Sheffield Wednesday boss Garry Monk has offered honest, public advice to Owls players down the pecking order at Hillsborough.
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The likes of youngster Matt Penney and defender Julian Börner – a virtual ever-present last season – have lost their places in the side and appear some way back in Monk’s thinking heading into their home clash with Brentford on Wednesday evening.

Penney has appeared in the club’s under-23 side in recent weeks and Börner has looked on while the likes of rookie Liam Shaw and new face Aden Flint have been preferred in the heart of defence.

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Asked about those sidelined to the periphery, Monk told The Star there is a simple way back into his thinking in this season more than any; through hard work and consistency on the training ground.

“I’ve made it clear, to have a competitive squad and to be successful moving forward, you have to be competitive every day,” he said. “You can’t have a day off, you’ll lose your space or position.

“I try to give opportunities, which I’ve done, but again we’re in a season where that is more important than ever. It’s not a normal season where I can give someone seven or eight games to get into it and build them up that way. That’s what I like to do normally.

“But it’s a case of having to deliver. When you have your opportunity, you have to deliver. There’s more emphasis on that than normal. They know that.”

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Wednesday moved to within four points of level points with a solid away win at Birmingham on Saturday. Monk has set a soft target for his side to reach that point by the end of the week; they have a home double-header against Brentford and Luton to attack.

Owls Matt Penney at full stretch    Pic Steve EllisOwls Matt Penney at full stretch    Pic Steve Ellis
Owls Matt Penney at full stretch Pic Steve Ellis

The Owls boss has refused to shy away from the ‘serious’ situation the club find themselves in and said the club’s points deduction has had a telling impact on his selection policy.

Monk said: “For younger players for instance, of course I’d love to give them five, six seven or eight games to try to get right into their stride. We don’t have that luxury this season.

“The importance of performing is on everyone, whether you’re a young lad making your debut or a senior lad that has played 300 or 400 games, we have to treat it like that because of the situation we’re in.

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“Everyone knows that. You’ll see it throughout the season. We’ve been quite consistent [in selection] so far but normally there’s a bit of a flux in terms of performance levels, normally as a manager you’d let certain things ride and to let them go through them go through a period of something.

“Usually that’s right as you need to show them that support, but we don’t have that luxury as much this season. We have to win and get as many points as possible.

“It’s not me putting pressure on them, it should be about determination. And that’s how it should be at the very top level you see the elite; if you don’t perform, you don’t play, simple as that. The pressure to perform is there every single game, in every single situation. Why should we be any different?

“We’re in a very serious situation.”

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