'Motivated' - Bolton boss makes Sheffield Wednesday admission ahead of Carabao Cup fixture
Sheffield Wednesday will be hoping to knock Bolton Wanderers out of the Carabao Cup in the first round for the second season running.
Bolton Wanderers head coach Steven Schumacher has said he is expecting Sheffield Wednesday to be fired up for Saturday’s Carabao Cup first round clash at Hillsborough.
For the second season running, the two sides will go head-to-head in the first round of the competition, with a youthful Owls XI getting the better of Wanderers at the Toughsheet Community Stadium 12 months ago. Following a pulsating 3-3 draw, the Owls progressed on penalties, winning 4-2.
As well as trading places in the pyramid last season, with Wednesday being relegated to League One and Bolton earning promotion to the Championship, the Owls’ situation has also been transformed following Arise Capital Partners’ takeover of the club in May.
As well as investing in the club’s infrastructure and making a collection of improvements to both Hillsborough and Middlewood Road, the US consortium has also invested in the squad, overseeing 12 new signings so far this summer.
Several of those new arrivals are expected to make their Wednesday debuts this weekend, meaning they will be determined to make a positive impression in their first outing in blue and white stripes.
With both sides set to be determined to earn momentum to take into their opening league fixtures next weekend, Bolton chief Schumacher is expecting a difficult game for his team, who are back in the Championship this season for the first time since 2019.
"It's a really good game for us because we want to test ourselves against a team who will be a really good team,” Schumacher told Wanderers TV.
“They were a Championship side last year, they went through a difficult season in difficult circumstances, and we go there knowing it's going to be a tough test. We want to go there and try and progress into the next round of the cup.
“They will be really well organised, they have a really good coach and they will be motivated for their fans as they went through a tough time last year and it wasn't easy for them, they will be looking to bounce straight back and get things moving in the right direction again and it's a really good test for us.”