Weekly meetings planned as Sheffield Wednesday manager considers Owls youth

The German’s first footballing experience after being unveiled at Hillsborough was a 2-2 draw between Wednesday’s U21s and their counterparts from Bramall Lane, Sheffield United, as they played out a dramatic Professional Development League tie.

Teenage hotshot, Bailey Cadamarteri, was on the scoresheet again that night, and fans hoping to see him get more chances in the first team will be buoyed by Röhl’s comments about linking the seniors with the academy.

It sounds like he wants to get to know everybody, youngsters included, as soon as possible.

“We’re looking forward,” he explained. “Because it’s important that we have a good relationship with the U21s. We will have a talk every week so that I have a good overview over who we can bring into the team, and maybe have some training sessions together… It’s about the process, and how I can get a feeling for a lot of players."

Another aspect of his ‘getting to know you’ process has seen him get together with some of the club’s longest-serving players, with the former Germany and Bayern Munich assistant explaining that he felt it important to speak to the likes of Barry Bannan and Liam Palmer to get a feel for how things are going.

“I spoke with Barry,” he explained. “It’s important to get feedback from the players to know their thoughts and how the feeling is. It’s important to have a connection with the captain, I also had a chat with Liam and they play a key role.

“It’s good to have conversations with players about how they are feeling, if they have private problems or problems with football, it’s important to create a relationship with each player.”

The coming weeks will now make for interesting viewing for those of a Wednesday persuasion as Röhl works out his best side, best formation and plenty more – and the first glimpse of that work will come on Saturday night against Watford.