Sheffield Wednesday have struggled in recent weeks and one of the reasons for that has been the lack of goals scored by the Owls’ attack, netting just five times in nine league games.
Steven Fletcher’s injury has been a key component in that, as Wednesday often relied on him to lead the attack and put chances away, as his top goalscorer status would suggest. The striker has only been available for 45 minutes since the mid-December win over Nottingham Forest due to sustaining an injury, but Garry Monk has now revealed that he could be back fit to play soon.
In his Brentford pre-match press conference the Owls’ boss said:
“Steven Fletcher has been back out on the pitch training all week. That has given everyone a lift with his attitude and leadership.
“There is a positive feeling about him, he’s not quite where we want him to be but yes, it’s is a big positive.”
It is an update that is likely to come as a welcome relief to fans, as Wednesday have won just once in the league since he has been missing, and his return could act as a big boost. As Monk alludes to, morale in the squad has already improved with his return to the training pitch, and having him up-front will likely increase players’ belief that they can get back to winning ways.
However, it is still not clear when the Scot could be back, and given where his problem lies it is best if precaution is taken, as the last thing the team needs is for him to aggravate his injury further.
Fletcher’s return will not only boost morale, but it will make the South Yorkshire outfit more of a threat. He has 15 goal contributions this term and has lost just five out of the 21 starts he has made, which suggests the Owls could still be challenging the play-off places had he not spent a spell on the sidelines.
How excited are you by this latest development Wednesday fans? Does Fletcher have the potential to turn the season back around when fit? Give us your opinion in the comments below…
