Wigan Athletic's Championship rivals 'taken aback' by EFL call

Sheffield Wednesday manager Garry Monk admits he's been 'taken aback' by the swiftness of the Championship's return to action.
Josh Windass in action for Sheffield WednesdayJosh Windass in action for Sheffield Wednesday
Josh Windass in action for Sheffield Wednesday

Queens Park Rangers were the first club to criticise Sunday night's statement regarding the June 20 resumption, insisting the plan puts players' safety at risk.

And the Owls have also hit out at being kept in the dark during the decision-making process.

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"We were all taken aback by that, having spoken to other managers and people at other clubs," said Monk, who believes even an extra week of preparation would make the world of difference.

"We had a managers' meeting a few weeks ago with the EFL and the managers of the Championship.

"One thing that we all asked for and there was an agreement of we would have a minimum of three weeks of contact training.

"If everyone has adhered to the guidelines and returned on the 25th (of May), then I think there is no manager that can sit here and say to you honestly that two-and-a-half weeks of contact training is good enough preparation for the players to play in an intense batch of games.

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“We believed we were working definitely a week behind the Premier League, so of course I think that (a one-week delay) should happen.

"But it seems those decisions weren't made with any consultation to us as clubs, so whether we have a say in that remains to be seen.

"You'd like to think that will happen, but all I'm trying to do is control what I can control.

"And now it's been announced trying to focus on preparing these players as best as possible to start on the 20th.

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“I understand the reasons why the EFL wanted to do that date, but I think it's unfair on us when the Premier League are starting on that date and they've had longer in contact training.

"They started training before we did and of course we would like the same. That's always been the consensus.

“It's not just about all of that, it's about the safety of everyone. Hopefully commonsense will come through. I'd like it to, but whether or not it will, we'll wait and see."

Monk believes injuries are inevitable given the short turnaround.

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He added: “The thing I have been hearing a lot in the past couple of weeks from various parts of the media, ex-players and pundits and the thing I don’t agree with is very flippantly just saying soft tissue injuries or injuries are part of the game. It is to be expected in this period because of it.

“I feel strongly against that because I have seen soft-tissue injuries and what might be a very minimal injury – a four to six-week injury – ruin players’ careers. It can be the start of a catalogue of injuries.”

Wigan Athletic striker Josh Windass is part of the Owls squad, having moved to Hillsborough on loan until the end of the season.

He's already tweeted his delight at being back on the training ground, and Monk's been pleased with the way his players have handled the situation.

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“The majority of the group have come back in very good condition, I’ve been very pleased," Monk added.

"They’ve worked very hard since we’ve come back in, but no matter training, when you come to matches that’s when the acid test is and it always takes a bit of time to get to match-sharpness.

“We had our tests and we've had a few come back, we're just waiting for the rest before I speak to the doctor, but so far we've had a clean bill of health.

“There have been no conversation or chats of any reservations at this time.

"We’ll try to fit in in-house games, friendly games as much as we can, probably not so much friendly games from the outside because of the risk that comes with that."