"I’ll sort it out on Monday" Tony Pulis on his decision to substitute crestfallen Jordan Rhodes in Sheffield Wednesday's draw with Stoke City

There were few words said between Jordan Rhodes and Tony Pulis as the striker passed by him after he was substituted in Sheffield Wednesday’s goalless draw with Stoke City at Hillsborough.
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The club-record signing, who spoke about his desire to earn a new contract at S6 after what he described as a ‘very frustrating’ 14 months under previous Owls boss Garry Monk, was hauled off having come on as a sub at half-time as Wednesday chased a winner.

In the absence of the suspended Josh Windass, Rhodes started in the draw at Swansea in midweek but was substituted after less than an hour.

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Asked his thinking behind the decision, which left Rhodes visibly upset and saw him pass his manager without a word, Pulis said: “It was for the team. I thought the team would benefit for that change. You do it sometimes.

Sheffield Wednesday sub Jordan Rhodes walks straight past Owls boss Tony Pulis after being substituted himself. Pic Steve Ellis.Sheffield Wednesday sub Jordan Rhodes walks straight past Owls boss Tony Pulis after being substituted himself. Pic Steve Ellis.
Sheffield Wednesday sub Jordan Rhodes walks straight past Owls boss Tony Pulis after being substituted himself. Pic Steve Ellis.

“It wasn’t the first time I’ve done it and I don’t think it will be the last. If the game has spun around in a different way then I’ll do it.

“It’s not about Jordan, it’s about the team, I’m more concerned about the team than individuals. We all have egos, we all have pride.

“Jordan will be disappointed, but I’ll have a chat with him about it on Monday.”

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Rhodes struggled to get into the game and touched the ball only 10 times in his 40-minute outing at Hillsborough.

Pulis once again spoke after the game about the fact his side lacked quality in the attacking areas. Wednesday have scored only seven goals in their 14 league matches this season.

Asked what Rhodes' performance lacked, the Owls boss said: “I could go into loads of things about what players weren’t doing and were doing, but that’s for me and the players.

“The last 10 minutes I had something else in my mind. He was running around, but I wanted something else for the last 10 minutes. I thought the game was getting really stretched in the last quarter of an hour and that there was space in certain areas.

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“I’ll be extremely disappointed if he’s not disappointed, but I’ll sort it out on Monday.”

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