Sheffield Wednesday boss explains shock decision on Will Vaulks and Michael Ihiekwe v Leeds United

The pair have been key parts of the Wednesday resurgence in recent games, both putting in another big performance in the win over Plymouth Argyle earlier in the week, so it was a surprise for many when the XI v Leeds was released and both of them had dropped to the bench.

Wednesday went on to lose the game 2-0 at Hillsborough, and though he was disappointed with the result the Owls boss insists that it was the right thing to do.

"I don’t know if they’re really big decisions,” Röhl told The Star. “We have a strong squad, and when I look to the week and the last weeks as well when we have midweek games, I have now some experience what is helpful for the team.

“Icky, in the final minutes against Plymouth, had some cramps and to play again two days later would have been a risk. We have more games, this isn’t the final one, so it was about bringing fresh legs in. It wasn’t about performance.

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“My thought was about the fresh legs, Leeds had a lot of games in recent weeks as well, so we tried to get an advantage. After the game you can say it was right or not right, but from my side it was the right decision - even though the result is not what we wanted.

“But for me it’s not about being down now, we’ll take the positive things and go forward."