Why Sheffield Wednesday manager Garry Monk will breathe a sigh of relief when transfer window shuts

The Championship club have so far only added one new face in January, bringing in Argentine winger Manuel Hidalgo for an undisclosed fee from Italian side Triestina to bolster their development squad.

But the Owls are still looking to strengthen their attacking options before the transfer market closes at 11pm on Friday.

Monk, whose side continue to be heavily linked with a loan move for Crystal Palace forward Connor Wickham, is looking forward to knowing what players he has to work with between now and the end of the season.

“There is so much speculation to deal with, not just incomings but outgoings,” he said.

“There is always questions about your squad on who might stay and who might go.

“From a manager’s point of view, you worry about it affecting players. They will read those things and you worry about whether their focus is taken off (the job at hand).

“When the window closes, it is great because everyone knows that this is what it is and this is until the end of the season.

“I think as a manager you are very happy when that deadline passes.”

By his own admission, Monk is not a big fan of the window.

The Wednesday chief said: “It is not a great window to do business in.

“You don’t get the time to bed in players. In the summer, you get pre-season with them and a good six, seven week period of getting them to understand and getting them to settle into the club.

“You are always asking in this window for the player to straight away make an impact so it is always difficult for the player coming in and for the squad to adjust and stuff like that.

“It is not a great window.”

Monk went on to say the Owls are close to finalising “one or two” deals ahead of their trip to Wigan Athletic.

“I’m in communication with the club and I’m told that we’re a lot closer to something happening,” said Monk.