Sheffield Wednesday boss Darren Moore seeking consistency in selection in key position

On-loan Harlee Dean became the third man to play in that position in as many matches and impressed as they romped to a 4-1 win over Cheltenham Town over the weekend.

He’s the latest of a handful of senior defenders to return from injury in the past few weeks, leaving question marks over who makes Darren Moore’s best back three as we enter the back end of the promotion battle.

Explaining the changes he’s had to make at the back in recent outings, Moore said: “If we had a midweek game, I think we’d struggle to put Harlee in again, but we don’t have that, so he had 90 minutes.

“Dominic Iorfa had the two games last week and we had to rest him. Jordan was tired today [when he was substituted].

“They’re more or less in a position where they can all play 90 minutes and play consecutive games but it happens [changes are made] where someone like Jordan gets tired. We’ll assess them this week. They’re all in a position to build up that strength.”

But it is an area of the pitch he’d like to instil some consistency in selection as Wednesday enter the final stages of a gruelling campaign?

“A lot of them have been injured for some time,” Moore continued. “My aim is to get all of the fit and strong and then get to the position whereby if someone comes in and is doing it, then they stay in and continue. We feel we’re nearly there for that, especially with the defenders.”

On the importance of the central defensive position and the influence a player can have there, Moore said: “It’s a massive role.

“You’re always in the thick of it and your reading of the game has to be exceptional. Harlee did well in there.

“We’ll assess them again and have a look at them for next week on how they got on in training. We’ll select the defenders we think is right for the next game to get the job done.”