“Some of them need to go” Garry Monk tears into the character of his Sheffield Wednesday squad after 'passive' late defeat at Wigan Athletic

An injury-time winner from Jamal Lowe ensured Wednesday left with all they deserved having stepped off the pace after Jacob Murphy’s opener.

And the Owls boss, who arrived in September and has regularly described the job on his hands as ‘a big one’, suggested the squad would be re-vamped under his leadership and that players showing a lack of desire ‘need to go’.

“It’s reared it’s head more in this last month but I’ve always known it’s been there,” he said.

“You see in critical moments the true character and the true desire and that’s what you judge it off. I’ve sat here many times protecting my teams and protecting my players but you can’t protect that, you can’t kid people.

“You have to be honest. I’ve seen that more often that I’d have liked in the past month and there’s no sugar coating that.

“It’s a process, it’s not an overnight thing. Change needs to come, it’s been too comfortable for too long at this football club.”

The defeat was Wednesday’s fifth in their last six Championship outings and saw them again lose ground on the top six and Monk repeated his claim that squad changes would take place going forward.

“That’s the story of the last month,” Monk said. “In the second half we were going through the motions.

“Fans aren’t stupid, we went through the motions and got turned over in that second half. It’s not good enough.

“You give that opportunity to everyone and there are decision to be made not just now but moving forward.

“Change needs to happen. The ones that can do it and can fight and will fight for their futures every day at the football club, they need to be here.

“The ones that can’t need to go. That’s the way it needs to be.

“We were so passive, we were five yards off everything. We were going through the motions. You play like that against any team in this league and anyone will turn you over.”