Sheffield Wednesday boss Garry Monk sets challenge to Owls squad

Optimism is high at Hillsborough after the Owls' hard-earned win over Wigan Athletic last weekend.

Victory lifted Wednesday up to eighth and was their third win in five Championship matches under Monk.

But the Owls boss is adamant there is more to come from the team as they step up their preparations for the trip to Cardiff City next week.

Monk told The Star: "I think one of the first days I walked into the office with the staff there was a board up of all the teams and the fixture list.

"When you look at it sometimes, you try and look for what period will look good on paper or easier...but there is none. The Championship is competitive and you have to play everyone at some point.

"There are difficult games and they come thick and fast and that is the beauty of the league.

"The attitude is to look forward to it. We want to be competing in every game and be in a position to take points.

"With that little bit of patience, we want to improve and push these players. They have been fantastic so far and we need to keep on that track."

The team returned to training on Thursday, having been granted a few days off by Monk following a hectic period.

"We have had busy couple of weeks so there has to be some recovery as that is important for the players," stressed Monk.

The ex-defender, who took over the reins just over a month ago, will put his Owls stars through some double training sessions in the lead up to the Bluebirds showdown.

Monk said: "I have a certain way of working. I understand physically the limit of the players and how hard I can push them on certain days and what they can take. They will be doing what they need to do and it is as simple as that but they know it.

"Their attitude towards the work has been brilliant and I am sure they are looking forward to it. We are looking at working on a few offensive ideas and there are a couple of defensive things that they need to brush up on."