Henrik Pedersen proud of Sheff Wed players and fans in late defeat at Leicester
The club have had to endure a turbulent off-season and are under a number of Football League-imposed embargoes for various financial breaches, including the payment of wages to players and staff being delayed for the last three months.
But the players delivered a determined display at the King Power Stadium, stunning Leicester when Nathaniel Chalobah's deflected effort gave them a shock 1-0 lead at half-time.
Jannik Vestergaard's close-range equaliser levelled things up after the break and things were made even harder when captain Barry Bannan picked up a red card with 14 minutes to go before Wout Faes broke Wednesday hearts three minutes from time.
Pedersen handed full credit for a spirited performance to both fans and players.
He said: 'I'm sitting with a very proud feeling for the performance from the boys. It has been some tough few weeks.
'When you have a little squad and play a lot of training against your under-21s and then come to Leicester, one of the best teams in the league. It was a big challenge today.
'How the boys competed I'm really proud of this and we need those games now to get the intensity so we can take the next step.
'I think our fans are a big inspiration for our players and in an away game like today at a really good team, where you have many difficult phases in a game, and then the fans are pushing, they are helping.'
Wednesday only had 15 senior players available before the match and saw both Yan Valery and Nathaniel Chalobah come off through injury.
Pedersen admits he may have to switch the team around for the midweek EFL Cup tie against Bolton and is looking to bolster his squad.
He added: 'We will look tomorrow, it was a tough lesson for the boys. Let's see the reaction, what we can do with the Stoke game in mind on Saturday.
'We're also searching for new players. We need to have new players, but still we need to do it with patience.
'We need new players otherwise you cannot play a championship with 46 games. We need some guys very quickly, but still, we need to have the right feeling when we we sign someone.'
Leicester boss Marti Cifuentes was pleased to secure all three points but praised Wednesday for their battling performance.
He said: 'It was important to start winning at home, it's a good feeling to start.
'Credit to Sheffield who worked hard for 99 minutes, we adjusted a few things in the second half and improved. Credit to the players, the ones who started and the ones who came off the bench.
'The championship is a tough league and a difficult one. We can't take anything for granted. This was not an easy game.
'They (Wednesday) fought incredibly well. It's a big club with lots of history, their fans were fantastic supporting them in a tough period.'
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Scottish Sun
40 minutes ago
- Scottish Sun
Motherwell ‘target Rangers star to fill void left by Lennon Miller's record breaking exit to Udinese
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) A RANGERS star is being lined up to replace Lennon Miller at Motherwell, according to reports. The teenage sensation completed a record breaking £4.75million move to Udinese on Tuesday, leaving the Steelmen short in the middle of the park. 3 Bailey Rice in pre-season action for Rangers Credit: Willie Vass 3 He made his Rangers debut at 16 years of age Credit: Willie Vass 3 Scotland U17 squad which included Rice, Miller and Ben Doak Credit: Kenny Ramsay But the Daily Record is claiming that Gers midfielder Bailey Rice, who came through the ranks with Miller at Motherwell, could return to Fir Park on a loan deal. The 18-year-old joined the Light Blues from the Steelmen in 2022 and is out of contract at the end of the season. Rice made his debut under Michael Beale in a 3-0 win over Livingston in February 2023 as a 16-year-old, and has also featured in the Scotland under 19s team. He's made 15 appearances for Rangers but has yet to feature for Russell Martin's men this term. Meanwhile, Esapa Osong has joined Motherwell on loan from Nottingham Forest on a season-long loan. The striker knows his way to goal with 25 goals in 41 games for the Premier League under 18 side. He also made his senior debut in the EFL Cup against Man Utd. The 20-year-old told the club's official website: "This is an incredible opportunity for me. 'I'm eager to demonstrate my abilities. "I'm thankful for the chance to join this club, compete in a challenging league, and contribute to the team's success. Billy Dodds on turning down Celtic for Rangers and surviving relegation scare with Aberdeen 'The manager has outlined his expectations, and now it's my responsibility to deliver. "I've heard that a large crowd will be travelling to the game on Saturday, and I can't wait to experience the atmosphere in the stadium.' Keep up to date with ALL the latest news and transfers at the Scottish Sun football page
The Guardian
5 hours ago
- The Guardian
Your Guardian sport weekend: Premier League, Rugby Championship and more
There is no escape. The Football League has held centre stage on the past two Saturdays but now the Premier League is screaming for our attention and we must surrender. Barry Glendenning and Rob Smyth will guide you through all the reaction to Friday night's Liverpool v Bournemouth opener, plus the buildup to Saturday's five top-flight matches and all the latest transfer stories, for those more interested in who's winning the window than who's winning actual games. We won't ignore the lower divisions, including Wrexham's first home game back in the Championship, against West Brom at 12.30pm, after a couple of Hollywood endings in league (agony) and Carabao Cup (ecstasy). Peter Lansley will report from Villa Park on the lead up to the lunchtime game while Ed Aarons, who is covering Tottenham v Burnley, will be answering your questions. Email to take part. The England and Wales Cricket Board may have sacrificed staging international cricket in August in favour of the Hundred, but there's a series decider going on in Cairns. South Africa won the first match thanks to an astonishing unbeaten 125 off 56 balls from Dewald Brevis that ended the hosts' unbeaten run of nine, while three wickets apiece for Josh Hazlewood and Ben Dwarshuis evened things up for Australia in the second match. Geoff Lemon is on over-by-over duty. The fixture computer can be a mean machine: Aston Villa, denied a lead at Manchester United on the last day by a premature referee's whistle in a game they went on to lose, start the season by facing Newcastle, who edged them out of a Champions League place on goal difference. As the late Jim Bowen would have put it on Bullseye: 'Here's what you would have won.' Jacob Ramsey will be in the Champions League after leaving Villa for St James' Park, though probably not in time to figure here. Barry Glendenning will be on minute-by-minute duty – perhaps Alexander Isak will have a look on his phone to see how things are going – while Peter Lansley will be at Villa Park to find out if Unai Emery has calmed down since his Old Trafford meltdown. The staggered start denies us the thrill that used to accompany opening day but the first 3pm Premier League team news of the season will be announced at 2pm, while three lunchtime games in the Championship will be drawing to a close: Derby v Coventry and Portsmouth v Norwich, as well as Wrexham's game, from where Sam Dalling will be reporting. Rob Smyth will guide you through all the news and then action from around the grounds, with Brighton v Fulham, Sunderland v West Ham and Tottenham v Burnley from the top division. In the Championship, can Sheffield United steady the ship at Swansea after the Bristol City debacle and a Carabao Cup exit at Birmingham? We will have reports and reaction from all the Premier League games, plus roundups from the lower divisions. Fresh from taming the Lions in the third Test (to leave some of their fans claiming a moral series victory), Joe Schmidt's Wallabies now have to prove they are genuinely back in business against top-notch regular opposition, rather than a deluxe scratch side. A respectable scoreline in the Rugby Championship opener against the world champions at Ellis Park in Johannesburg would suggest that Australia are heading in the right direction as the countdown to their home World Cup in 2027 continues, while South Africa are trying to retain this title for the first time. Daniel Gallan is on live duty for us, and will then be analysing what went right and wrong for both teams. Molineux will stage its own tributes to Diogo Jota and his brother before the game against Manchester City. On the visiting side, Rúben Dias and Bernardo Silva both played alongside Jota in his last match, Portugal's Nations League triumph against Spain. After the obsequies are concluded, the sides will set about each other in a fixture that was won last season by John Stones' added-time header. Whatever else has happened, both sides will have a chance of finishing the day top of the table and you can bet that Pep Guardiola would welcome such an early statement of intent. Scott Murray will helm our coverage of the buildup and the match itself, while Ben Fisher will report from the ground. Along with the results, Saturday could throw up some talking points arising from the refereeing changes introduced for this season. Will we see a corner awarded for a goalkeeper holding on to the ball for too long? What about defenders being penalised for holding? John Brewin – our man at Brighton v Fulham on Saturday – will chair the discussion on what has gone before and tee up the afternoon's action, with the help of our reporter at Old Trafford, Jamie Jackson. Email to discuss whether Ruben Amorim can fix the Manchester United malaise and whether Mikel Arteta's reinforcements have given him an Arsenal team capable of going one better. We'll also have updates on the Championship battle between two relegated sides, Ipswich and Southampton. Two serial trophy winners meet at Stamford Bridge: Conference League and Club World Cup winners Chelsea take on FA Cup and Community Shield holders Crystal Palace. Oliver Glasner would like to hold on to the key names that helped Palace to those Wembley successes, especially Eberechi Eze. For Enzo Maresca, it all seems to be coming together nicely, but his players have hardly had a holiday thanks to Gianni Infantino's brainwave. Join Daniel Harris for live coverage of this match and updates on Nottingham Forest v Brentford, while Jacob Steinberg will have a match report and reaction. For many, many years, fixture computer rules about keeping the previous season's top four apart on the opening weekend would have ruled out a Manchester United v Arsenal clash, but last season the hosts finished lower in the final table than in the alphabetical list of teams for the first time in a generation. With a new-look attack in place, Ruben Amorim will seek a statement win, but Arsenal have also strengthened as they seek to end their title drought. Rob Smyth will provide minute-by-minute updates, while Jamie Jackson and Jonathan Wilson will cover the news, reaction and analysis from Old Trafford.
Daily Mirror
10 hours ago
- Daily Mirror
Ryan Reynolds backs risky £25m transfer strategy as Wrexham make bold Premier League push
Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac have sanctioned an eye-watering potential transfer spend at Wrexham this summer, breaking their transfer record again after snapping up Nathan Broadhead Wrexham have made a bold statement about their Championship ambitions by securing the services of Nathan Broadhead. The Wales international's move from Ipswich on a four-year deal was announced on Thursday. The transfer is believed to be worth an initial £7.5million, potentially rising to as much as £10m with add-ons, according to reports. The 27-year old forward is the ninth new face brought in by manager Phil Parkinson during the summer transfer window. Wrexham 's Hollywood owners, Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac, have given the green light for significant spending following the club's promotion from League One in April. Their spree began with the relatively modest acquisition of striker Ryan Hardie from Plymouth for £700,000 in mid-June. Goalkeeper Danny Ward then joined on a free transfer from Leicester, followed by Empoli left-back Liberato Cacace for around £2.2m, which could rise to £4m in the future. Midfielder George Thomason was next to arrive from Bolton for £1.2m, with forward Josh Windass signing on a free after leaving Sheffield Wednesday. Nottingham Forest midfielder Lewis O'Brien was added to Wrexham's squad for a reported fee of £3m that could eventually increase to £5m. Defender Conor Coady from Leicester and striker Kieffer Moore from Sheffield United were snapped up for £2m each just before the season opener at Southampton. The signing of Broadhead marks the third time this summer that the Red Dragons have smashed their transfer record. Wrexham's potential expenditure so far totals a staggering £25m, with initial fees amounting to around £18.5m. The hefty sum places Wrexham amongst the top spenders in the second tier during the current transfer window, as Parkinson aims to assemble a team capable of challenging in the upper echelons of the league. Reynolds and Mac have made no secret of their ultimate ambition: to guide Wrexham to the Premier League and eventually clinch the title. Mac, who recently applied to change his surname from McElhenney, has also stated that he won't be content with consolidation. However, Wrexham's ambitious spending spree does pose a risk in a league governed by Profit and Sustainability rules (PSR). The club's CEO, Michael Williamson, recently shed some light on Wrexham's transfer strategy. The ex- Inter Milan executive disclosed that the owners prefer to keep their distance when it comes to the nitty-gritty details. Speaking in an interview with the Telegraph, Williamson said: "They know what they know and know what they don't know and are not afraid to admit it. They're very refreshing, because they are supportive, they're engaged, but they do not try to micromanage or get too involved." When planning their latest transfer budget, the chief executive presented the duo with various scenarios, including budgets for survival, a mid-table finish, and competitiveness. Showing their ambitious streak, Reynolds and Mac are reported to have questioned him about what it would take to secure a top-two spot, guaranteeing automatic Premier League promotion. Williamson revealed their verdict was: "Let's be competitive and see where we end up." He added: "If we can find ourselves in that position towards the back end of the season, I give us a very good shot of being in the play-offs. And then, ultimately, if we're in the play-offs, I give us a very good shot of getting promoted." So, just how risky is Wrexham's considerable spending spree? In their corner is the club's robust financial standing after recording a remarkable annual turnover of £26.7m for the financial year ending June 2024. The accounts cover a period whilst they were playing in League Two and was largely down to the worldwide spotlight brought by their famous owners. The popularity of the Welcome to Wrexham documentary series and profitable sponsorship agreements also played their part. Although Wrexham still recorded a deficit of £2.7m during that period, PSR regulations permit Championship sides to lose £39m across a three-year period, working out at £13m annually. They're not entirely dependent on Reynolds and Mac's financial clout either, with the New York-based Allyn family also offering significant support. However, some concerns have been raised about whether they're getting bang for their buck. In the case of Broadhead, they splashed out a hefty sum for a player in the final year of his contract at Ipswich. There's also scepticism about the calibre of some of their new recruits. Former Wales striker Iwan Roberts reckons they've paid too much for Conor Coady, arguing his prime years are behind him. On the BBC's Feast of Football podcast, Roberts said: "He (Coady) hasn't done a thing at Leicester for two years. If you ask any Leicester fan if they will lose sleep over losing Conor Coady, and they've got £2million for him, they will say that no, they won't. "He hardly kicked the ball in the season when they won the Championship. Last season, he was involved in 22 Premier League games in the second-worst defence in the league. I think he's past his prime." However, Wrexham can point to their recent hat-trick of promotions from the National League to the Championship as proof that their transfer strategy has been successful so far. Whether it continues to pay off in the second tier remains to be seen. Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice. Sign up to our newsletter! Wrexham is the Game is great new way to get top-class coverage Wrexham AFC is the arguably the fastest-growing club in the world at the moment thanks to a certain Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney. The Dragons have achieved two consecutive promotions and are cheered on by crowds from not only North Wales but also from all over the globe, thanks to the success of the Disney+ documentary 'Welcome to Wrexham'. But does it have a dedicated, quality source of information piped through to your inbox each week, free of ads but packed with informed opinion, analysis and even a little bit of fun each week? That's where Wrexham is the Game steps in... Available every Wednesday, it provides all the insights you need to be a top red. And for a limited time, a subscription to 'Wrexham is the Game' will cost fans just £15 for the first year.
