Sheffield Wednesday boss ignoring EFL charge ahead of West Brom clash

The Owls, whose international break was splintered by news of an EFL charge of misconduct last week, are looking forward to the opportunity to avert attention back to the football pitch, maintaining that player focus will not be an issue.

That’s according to manager Garry Monk, who said his experience of handling similar overhead distractions at Birmingham last season will benefit the squad as they enter a busy period.

An EFL statement came as a shock to the club, Monk said, who had thought the issue was close to being closed.

He said the message from the club has been that they are ‘very confident’ the matter will be resolved without a points deduction.

“Having spoken to everyone at the club, the club as a whole, I think it was the surprise of it,” he said.

“The communication has been fantastic over the last year, between the club and the EFL.

“No-one at the club saw that coming. The biggest part of the surprise, is the charges that were put forward were things which the EFL would have ratified and agree to at the beginning.

“That’s where the strangeness of it, the surprise for the club. Those charges are for things which the EFL already ratified and agreed to.

“But that’s a club issue. In terms of myself, players and the staff we have here, it doesn’t affect our daily training, it doesn’t affect we have to go on to the pitch and try and win games.

“We can only control what we can control, that’s my duty as a manager. It’s the duty of the players and staff to focus on our jobs, which is the football. The club will deal with the rest of it as it goes along.”

There may be a sense of deja vu for the 40-year-old Owls boss, who has already had his fair share of off-field challenges to face throughout his relatively short managerial career.

Last season his Birmingham City side was making a bee-line for the Championship play-off places when they were slapped with a 12-point deduction that derailed their season.

The differences between the two situations is stark, Monk said, but it is an experience that can help the Owls stay safely on track, starting this week as they travel to an in-form, top-of-the-table West Brom.

The hosts are without influential midfield duo Romaine Sawyers and Jake Livermore, but in Matheus Pereira they have a creative livewire top of the assists chart and alongside West Ham loanee Grady Diangana, West Bromn’s engine room has energy to burn.

Monk said the Owls’ focus will be on what they can do as they turn the corner into one of the busiest periods of the season.

Saturday, he said, is an opportunity for the team to shift the camera lenses away from the boardroom and back onto their promotion campaign.

“I think it’s a great period,” Monk said. “That’s the attitude of the players. We can’t wait to get into this period, it’s going to be tough, and there will be a big demand on all of us.

“The mentality of the whole club - the fans, and us - we stick together and come out fighting hard in this period.”

Speaking in relaxed mood, Monk reiterated the need for his players to ‘close ranks’. It’s a tactic he carried out impressively at St Andrews last season and he said he has already seen examples of a renewed fighting spirit from his squad during the international break.

He said: “In terms of what happened at Birmingham, having the experience and knowledge of trying to help a group understand how to focus on what they need to do.

“That’s the reality, it doesn’t directly affect us, in terms of how hard we can train every day, we can play how we want to play, approach matches to win matches.

“That’s what we have to focus on, and what we have already spoke about. I have seen that mentality during the international break, and we are going to need that - along with the fans - to help the team.

“We show how together we are, and we come out fighting. That’s the key for this period and the rest of the season.”