Sheffield Wednesday: Portsmouth boss hails 'incredible' Owls team before Hillsborough visit

Wednesday’s 2022/23 campaign gets underway in a few hours’ time as they look to extend their long unbeaten run at home in League One to 10 games – their last defeat was back in February against Rotherham United.

Both the Owls and the Blues are expected to challenge for promotion this season, and the clubs will be desperate to get off to a good start as the new season kicks off, though Cowley knows that it won’t be easy.

Speaking to the club’s official website, the Pompey boss said, “Sheffield Wednesday had the best home record in the division last season and have an incredible team with a lot of depth… But it’s a great challenge for us. Our goal is to win on Saturday, then wake up on Sunday and put all our focus into try to beat Lincoln the following week.

“If we do that, then we’ll wake up the next day and try to win against Cardiff, and we’ll keep working like that.”

He did say, however, that he’s pleased with how his team are shaping up after a busy summer.

“We’re in a better place than we were 12 months ago and I like the group that we have here now,” he went on to say. “There are a lot of good characters and I feel that spirit and togetherness will grow as the season unfolds and those relationships develop.

“We’ve been pleased with the recruitment we’ve done so far and it’s been nice to bring more young players into the building.”

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