Under Danny Rohl, Sheffield Wednesday has been constant regardless of results—win, lose, or draw. And it deserves huge praise, if I may use such phrase.
He always chooses aggressive teams. Without fail. Even to the point of traveling with the goal of playing well to locations like Southampton and Leicester.
In those instances, it backfired, but Rohl has often maintained his composure. And it’s making a difference. I usually count five or six players on the team that want to attack, or at least half of them. Add in James Beadle, a young keeper who has received training in passing out, and that makes up more than half the team.
For a team in the dangerous conditions of Wednesday, this is rather uncommon, even though they have been playing catch up with crucial victories. You observe players who, starting from the back, are stronger at attacking than defending.
Pol Valentin, who is getting his bearings—quite quickly, in fact. Marvin Johnson, back on a team he never ought to have been cut from. Moving forward, Ian Poveda, who is on loan, is demonstrating an energizing connection between the midfield and the attack. Barry Bannan, the skipper, is a talented player at his disposal. Anthony Musaba, nimble and cunning. All of this helped Ike Ugbo, the Owls’ much-needed marksman who has five goals in four games.
However, there isn’t a stronger case I can think of for Will Vaulks’ significance leading up to his return to his old team, Rotherham, for this weekend’s South Yorkshire derby. Vaulks is the kind of dependable player that every team needs, especially one that is so offensive.
Vaulks offers the strength and aggression that can turn draws into victories. He will also keep in mind that Rotherham can always win at New York Stadium, despite their current situation at the bottom of the Championship.
That is a game that, in my opinion, is capital D dangerous. Not that I would have expected this team, with its determination and faith, to lose to opponents who are so hopelessly lost.
It seems like the Owls may climb out of the bottom three with a win in these next two games, starting on Tuesday at home against Plymouth. However, they put themselves in such a bind (or rather, the owner did with his careless choices from the previous summer) that there is no way they can recover from that, even if they want to make it three wins out of four.
Then lurk Ipswich and Leeds. But one thing is certain: Wednesday has a better than fair chance of winning. This club is unquestionably fighting in addition to being upbeat.
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