Sheffield Wednesday: Goal responsibility falls on new shoulders as wide man reveals problem shared with Man City

Teams lift their game, it is so often said, and adapt their playing styles for the challenge of teams like Sheffield Wednesday, Sunderland, Ipswich Town.

It’s certainly been the case in a number of Owls matches this season; their 2-0 win over Morecambe on Tuesday a prime example as the Shrimpers set up in a low block to frustrate the home crowd, an endeavour in which they were successful until George Byers’ 55th-minute strike.

Though Wednesday have the quality in their squad to break such a challenge down, it does provide them with a test, according to in-form wide man Marvin Johnson.

He likened the tactics to those faced by Manchester City in the Premier League and takes it as a compliment.

He said: “We have to take credit in the fact that a lot of the teams we’ve played have shown us massive respect in the way they’ve set up to defend and play against us.

“As mad as it sounds, sometimes it is a lot harder to play against a team that sit in and invite you try and break them down. It is hard.

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“We see it every week with Man City, sometimes they struggle to break teams down in games you’d expect them to put five past them.

“We have to deal with all that and take it on but when we do get those chances we need to take them. There have been times we’ve created 20-odd goal attempts in a game and not scored.”

Injuries to Lee Gregory, Josh Windass and Tyreece John-Jules in the last couple of weeks leaves Wednesday short up top. The responsibility then falls, Johnson said, to the likes of himself to provide goals from out wide.

“We know ourselves that from the start of the season we’ve not scored anywhere near as many goals as we would have liked to at this point,” he admitted.

“Everyone needs to chip in. Baz has chipped in, Chey has chipped in with a couple. In terms of forwards and wide players we can certainly chip in with a few more.”

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The raft of injuries, coupled with a manic fixture schedule in which Owls boss Darren Moore has already made clear will mean plenty of rotation in the coming weeks, mean the likes of Saido Berahino and Callum Paterson may get chances to impress that they’ve not had in recent weeks.

Former Middlesbrough man Johnson is backing his teammates to do the business.

He said: “It’s hard when you’re not the main striker or you’re not getting as many minutes as you’d like. It is hard.

“But you know there’s going to be an opportunity in a season with injuries and suspensions and little things like that. The team changes and you always have to be ready.

“The things the boys show in training, finishing drills and things like that, you can see they’re capable. When they get that moment they know that we need them as much as we all need each other.”