The EFL Trophy squad rules Sheffield Wednesday must follow vs Salford City as changes expected
Sheffield Wednesday will get their EFL Trophy campaign underway against Salford City on Tuesday night.
Following back-to-back 0-0 draws, Sheffield Wednesday will be targeting a return to winning ways when they face Salford City in their EFL Trophy opener at the AIG Stadium on Tuesday night.
Following relegation from the Championship last term, the Owls will compete in the EFL Trophy for the first time since the 2022/23 campaign this season, offering them the opportunity to win some silverware and earn a trip to Wembley in April.
Just as it was four years ago, the league is Wednesday’s primary focus this season, but Owls boss Henrik Pedersen has vowed to take the clash with Salford “very, very seriously”. It has been argued that the competition, certainly at this stage, could be used as an opportunity for Pedersen to keep his players fresh amid the three-week break from league action.
Centre-back Di’Shon Bernard is poised to make his first senior appearance in 19 months against his former club, with Pedersen hinting on Saturday that he could be in line to play 45 minutes. The Jamaican earned 45 minutes for the Under-21s just over a week ago.
It has not been uncommon for some managers over the years to use the EFL Trophy as an opportunity to make wholesale changes and field a weakened team. Pedersen is expected to shuffle his pack against the Ammies, but his team selection will be governed by strict EFL rules.
Rule 7.3 of the EFL Trophy guidelines states: ‘Each EFL club shall play its full available strength in and during all matches’, while section 7.4 highlights the specific criteria around who is identified as a ‘qualifying player’, with four needing to be included in the starting XI.
A ‘qualifying player’ is an individual who meets any of the following criteria:
Rule 7.4.1: a player who had started the immediately preceding first-team fixture (as defined below);
Rule 7.4.2: subsequently starts the immediately following first-team fixture;
Rule 7.4.3: is in the list of ten players at the club with the highest number of starting appearances in first team fixtures in the same season;
Rule 7.4.4: has made forty or more starting appearances in first team fixtures or international equivalents (and not limited to the same club or season); or
Rule 7.4.5: is on a standard loan from a Premier League club or any EFL club operating a Category One academy.
Any club that fails to field a full-strength team will be required to pay a fine of up to £5,000, in accordance with Rule 7.6.
Following their clash with Salford, Wednesday will welcome Sunderland’s Under-21s to Hillsborough for their second EFL Trophy group game on Tuesday, October 6, before hosting Accrington Stanley on Tuesday, November 10.