Danny Röhl makes self-admission as Sheffield Wednesday wonder what might have been…
The failings that have prevented Sheffield Wednesday’s solid season of progress from extending towards the play-offs are by now well known.
Sloppy defending, set piece woe and individual errors have routinely combined alongside injury problems and horror home form to ensure a campaign spent peeking in on the top six was never truly likely to come good in that respect and though a play-off place is still mathematically possible, focus has turned to finishing the season as strongly as they can, with players having been individually challenged to take what they can from the remaining five games into the summer.
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In the closing weeks of a campaign that has been read as an important step forward for the club – and could serve to secure their highest league finish since 2017 – Wednesday have shown signs of fatigue in a long second half to a campaign that hasn’t seen them win at Hillsborough in over three months.
Big players have shown signs of wear and tear both in terms of availability and performance and after a 2-0 lead was pegged back to a draw at the home of a sorely out-of-form Blackburn Rovers side on Tuesday evening, Owls players will no doubt have huge desire to collect that first home win since New Years Day against Oxford United this weekend – a side whose away tally of only 10 points is worsened only by basement battlers Plymouth Argyle.
Speaking to The Star ahead of the match, Wednesday boss Danny Röhl maintained the goals and expectations set for his side in these final five outings but spoke with a sense of reflection on the campaign as a whole – and their missed opportunities to make up ground on what would have been an underdog position in the play-off battle.
A sparkling away record leaves a sense of what might have been had they managed to get something going at S6. The struggles have been consistent but narrow – all five of the home defeats since the start of November have been by the odd goal and Wednesday have drawn seven times.
“It is the momentum sometimes,” Röhl said with a grimace. “Yesterday I watched all the highlights from the second half of the season back, when you watch them you see late conceded goals or some moments we missed in the box to score. Then an injury, in, out.
“We missed the rhythm. But we will not make excuses, other teams also have these problems. We played up until matchday 40 around the play-offs. We had chances, now we draw from 2-2. The last three or four games, aside from Cardiff where we took a point; the derby, Hull, Blackburn. We could take more points. But football is not about wishes, it is about reality.
“The reality is that we have 53 points with good football and exciting football, but also with individual mistakes and unforced errors in some moments. This is what we have to improve in the future if you want to make the next step.”
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A talented but still inexperienced coach in management terms, Röhl was happy to admit there are things he would do differently in what has been a season of progress. The German coach keeps a folder of notes reflecting on methods that have worked and things that have not gone quite as well – and it’s all part of a learning process he will enact in the coming years.
“I take it myself as well,” he said. “It is not that I know everything in my 35 years. I have an idea and when you have a full season you learn things about some moments in the season.
“After the season I will look to all these things and then adjust these things of course. Today I will not speak so much in details but it is important, I must always have reflection and feedback for myself. It is about what I can improve and then I look to the guys beside me.”
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