Sheffield Wednesday: Nathaniel Mendez-Laing's words will be music to the ears of Darren Moore

Even for the flair players in the Wednesday team, hard work remains at the forefront of Moore’s demands and in Nathaniel Mendez-Laing he appears to have signed a player willing to do just that.

The former Cardiff and Middlesbrough man was speaking after his move to the Owls was confirmed, following a period of a few weeks training at Middlewood – which Moore insists wasn’t a trial – and Mendez-Laing’s words will be exactly what his new manager wants to hear.

"Along with the experience, I am an attack-minded player but I do the other side as well,” said the 29-year-old, who has amassed over 300 league and cup appearances in his career, including a season in the Premier League wth Cardiff City.

"I am a team player and hopefully I can help a few of the young boys as well.”

Mendez-Laing has been impressed by what he has seen of the squad since being involved at Wednesday and while the amount of draws the team has had has been a cause of frustration, the new boy feels it is something to build on.

“There have been good performances, a lot of draws that could have been wins but it's good performances,” he added. “It is just the final end product and I think if you turn them draws into wins then it's a lot different.

“Hopefully I can help that, 100% it's something I am willing to do. My game is very attacking, whether it's assisting or scoring I am more than happy to chip in.”

It’s been a long time since Mendez-Laing ran out in front of a big crowd. He left Cardiff City in September 2020 and joined Middlesbrough in February this year, at a time when fans were unable to attend due to the pandemic. His last match was at the beginning of April and he’ll hope to be running out in front of the Hillsborough faithful perhaps against MK Dons on Tuesday night.

"Can't wait for that, I've missed it a lot,” he admitted.