Sheffield Wednesday’s road map for absent midfielder explained

The Frenchman made a good impression on his debut for the Owls after joining on loan from Portimonense in Portugal, however it unfortunately only last just over an hour before he was a struck down with an injury that has already kept him out for almost three months.

No return date has been given for Diaby at this point, however he was seen back out running on the grass at Middlewood Road last week, and Danny Röhl says that the plan is to get him playing with the club’s U21s when he does return to fitness once again.

When asked about the midfielder, he replied, “It’s step by step now, he’s had his first training session out on the pitch to start running, and this is the process. We’ll see how far he is, and when he’s ready to play again then it’s about getting some minutes in the U21s and seeing how good his performances are. Step by step he’ll come back to the first team…

"It’s important that all players are fit because I demand a lot of things, and with my intensity we need fit players. We need players who can run a lot, sprint a lot, so after a long injury you need the time to recover before coming back in good shape.”

Wednesday have already filled their 25-man squad for the first half of the season, with Diaby having to wait until the new year to try and force his way into the manager’s Championship plans.