This article is part of Football FanCast’s Opinion series, which provides analysis, insight and opinion on any issue within the beautiful game, from Paul Pogba’s haircuts to League Two relegation battles…
Sheffield Wednesday showed they can win ugly on Tuesday evening as they pushed a 1-0 win over the line against Stoke City at Hillsborough.
Massimo Luongo netted his second goal in three matches right before half-time as he pounced on an error in the Potters’ backline before slotting past the visiting goalkeeper.
The victory means Garry Monk has now picked up 14 points from a possible 21 since being appointed at the start of September, but how does this compare to the key figures that have been at the helm in recent times?
Wednesday’s last three managers have all endured mixed spells with only one of them leading the club to a playoff campaign – that was under Carlos Carvalhal.
After seven league matches in charge of the south Yorkshire club, Monk is currently outperforming the lot with his current record.
The next best was the man he technically replaced as Steve Bruce picked up one less point after being appointed back in February this year.
While Carvalhal, who led the club to back-to-back playoff campaigns between 2015 and 2017, recorded the worst start of Wednesday’s last four managers, managing a meagre six points.
As Monk is emphatically outperforming the man who last brought some sort of small success to the Owls, maybe it highlights where the club are currently heading.
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Averaging two points per game over the course of one Championship season would hand them 92 points, which would have seen them earn second place in the three of the last four campaigns, and in the 2014/15 season, it would have landed them the second-tier title.
Their defence has spearheaded the 40-year-old’s impressive start to life as Wednesday boss as they have only conceded four goals in those seven matches, in addition to three clean sheets.
If Monk can find a way to lessen the reliance on top goalscorer Steven Fletcher, they will have every chance of keeping this level of form up into the new year and maybe beyond.
