MONK’S PRAYER ANSWERED AS COWLEYS LOSE
IT WAS billed as the clash of the new managers – and Garry Monk came out on top as his Sheffield Wednesday side overcame Danny Cowley’s Huddersfield.
Former Birmingham boss Monk could hardly have had a better start to his Owls reign. Steven Fletcher headed in to give Wednesday a tenth-minute lead at The John Smith’s Stadium and forgotten man Sam Winnall, on as a sub, sealed victory when he glanced home the second in the 72nd-minute.
A delighted Monk said: ““I don’t know what’s gone before, but maybe this squad haven’t had enough belief to produce the quality we all know they have.
“But they’ve been great since I’ve come in. I’ve been really pleased with the response of the squad.”
For Huddersfield, it was another disappointing day. The defeat left them with just one point from their opening seven games, only goal difference keeping them off bottom spot.
It was a signal too of the size of the task ahead for the Cowleys – boss Danny and his brother and assistant Nicky. Brought in from League One outfit Lincoln, their first taste of Championship management ended with no reward.
“This club needs some grit, we need to get some fight,” said Danny. “We didn’t have enough energy, we were too slow.
“You have two choices in life, you can be a victim or a fighter. At the minute we’re affected by the scoreboard, which you can understand. But we have to change that.”
Meanwhile, Leeds United took advantage of slip-ups by their promotion rivals to return to the top of the table with a Yorkshire derby victory of their own – though they left it late at lowly Barnsley.
It looked as though Marcelo Bielsa’s men would be thwarted in their bid to return to the summit when the game remained goalless late on. However, the Whites have an ace in the pack in Arsenal loanee Eddie Nketiah.
Introduced as a substitute for Patrick Bamford on 70 minutes, the 20-year-old tucked home from a Kalvin Phillips free-kick in the 84th minute to break the deadlock.
Five minutes later the points were definitely heading to Elland Road. Nketiah was fouled by former Leeds man Aapo Halme and Mateusz Klich scored from the spot.
Bielsa was effusive in his praise of England Under-21 international Nketiah, whose goal against the Tykes was his fourth in six appearances.
“Some players are involved (in play) a lot before creating chances,” he said. “Nketiah is more involved at the end of the action but he has good characteristics to combine with his team-mates to give us these options.
“He is a striker who can score goals. For me, he is a complete player.”