Portsmouth could bring player back from loan in snap Sheffield Wednesday decision
Sheffield Wednesday’s next opponents could be forced to recall one of their out-on-loan players in an attempt to sidestep an injury crisis in their goalkeeping department.
Portsmouth number one Will Norris is out with a knee injury that has proven more troublesome than first thought, with Pompey boss John Mousinho rating his chances of involvement in Friday evening’s welcoming of Wednesday as low. Nicholas Schmid has deputised but was forced off in their midweek defeat to Cardiff City on suspicion of concussion.
Subscribe to Alex Miller on Wednesday, The Star’s premium Owls newsletter for analysis, exclusive interviews and behind-the-scenes insight at Sheffield Wednesday
Schmid is still being assessed but should he be ruled out under head injury protocol, it leaves former Tottenham Hotspur goalie Jordan Archer in line to make his first league start in three-and-a-half years. With no obvious stand-in to make the bench, Mousinho admitted the club are looking at the recall of 19-year-old Toby Steward from his loan at Tonbridge Angels.
It serves as unwelcome turbulence for a newly-promoted side that sit bottom of the Championship after 11 outings. Speaking after a poor Tuesday evening performance at Cardiff that allowed the home side to amass 24 shots on goal in their 2-0 win, Mousinho revealed a dressing room inquest and stood to question the mindset of his players.
He told our sister paper The News: “It’s worrying because the mentality the lads showed on Saturday (a 2-1 win at QPR) to win - and they then start the game like that. I thought the way we approached the game looked a bit apologetic, to be honest. The corner (for the second goal) is a really good example of that.
“We have players who are capable of winning headers and players capable of organising and using their voices to make sure we’re on it. I’m not entirely sure why that’s the case (they’re not alert), but it’s something we have to find the solution to. We did spend a long time (in the dressing room), I don’t usually show things to the players. It’s usually a quick debrief - but I don’t think that performance warranted a quick debrief.”