Sheffield Wednesday star gives fascinating insight into Garry Monk's management style

Monk has recorded two wins from his three Championship matches in charge of Wednesday, with their Carabao Cup defeat to Everton his only setback so far.

His game plan to target former club Middlesbrough from crosses and set pieces paid off on Saturday as the Owls romped to a 4-1 victory at the Riverside.

Monk's exacting standards, thorough preparation and attention to detail has impressed all and sundry.

Reach, who scored Wednesday's third goal, told The Athletic: "It sounds like a cliche, but he’s just trying to get us to improve on the basics and getting everyone to perform to the best of their abilities.

"Defensively, we are given our responsibility an awful lot more in terms of set-pieces; your man is your man and if he scores that goal, you know who to blame.

"We’ve distilled that in the squad – everyone has the mentality of ‘my opponent, who I’m marking, will not score’ and when you do that it breeds a determination not to concede. Going forward, he’s just trying to build everyone’s confidence. We’re trying to show how good we are.

“It can just be that simple. I haven’t started the season as well as I would have wanted and it’s taken a while for me to score. The manager has come in and told me how good a player he thinks I am and to go out and express myself. I’ve seen improvements in my game even in the short period of time he’s been here. Sometimes, a player just needs a push in the right direction, a different opinion. He’s done that.”

Wednesday's players reported in for a recovery session on Sunday morning and reviewed the footage from their Boro triumph.

“We could easily have been given the day off, but the manager doesn’t do that," said Reach, who is expected to face Hull City at the KCOM Stadium on Tuesday. "He’s so precise about every detail and if he’s going to do that and if he doesn’t get days off, then we’re not going to get them either. We need to be every bit as focused and hungry as him for success.”