Sheffield Wednesday agree deal for Dave Challinor to become new manager

By Harry Whitfield, with additional reporting by Tom Blackett

Sheffield Wednesday have reached an agreement for Dave Challinor to become their new first-team manager.

The Owls confirmed the news ahead of Sunday’s afternoon League One clash against Blackpool, with Challinor due to attend the fixture at Hillsborough.

The club said further details of the the 51-year-old’s appointment would be announced on Monday, when he will be formally introduced to the Wednesday faithful.

Challinor emerged as a leading contender for the vacancy following Henrik Pedersen’s departure last weekend, having previously worked with Wednesday sporting director Simon Wilson at Stockport County.

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Reunion at Owls

Wilson was instrumental in bringing Challinor to Edgeley Park, where the pair helped oversee the Hatters’ rise from the National League to League One.

Their reunion had been a strong possibility since both left Stockport at the end of last season, with Wilson taking up his new role at Wednesday in the summer.

Challinor departed the day after Stockport’s League One play-off final defeat to Bolton Wanderers in May and has been out of work since.

The pair will now be tasked with leading Wednesday’s revival in the third tier.

The Owls sit ninth with 19 points from 12 games, three points outside the play-off places.

Pedersen was dismissed after Wilson cited a lack of progress in establishing a recognisable style of play and greater consistency.

Injuries

Interim boss Matt Hamshaw took charge for the first time in Tuesday’s 1-1 draw against Cambridge United and is preparing to lead the side for the final time against Blackpool today.

Hamshaw will make a late call on who is fit to play, with a defensive injury crisis causing particular concern.

Defenders Liam Cooper, Di’Shon Bernard and Ricardo Santos will all be assessed ahead of the game.

Speaking to the press on Friday, Hamshaw said: “I think it’s going to be a race against the clock. We’ve got a number coming back.

“Obviously, I won’t go into too much detail at the minute with squad selection.

“We miss Coops, we miss Dish and we miss Rico. They’re obviously three big players for the club.

“But when one player is down, another has to stand up. We trust all our players in the squad and people have to stand up and be counted.”

Striker Jamal Lowe is ruled out through suspension, while fellow attacker Louie Barry continues his recovery from an ankle ligament injury in training.

Clinical

Meanwhile, Blackpool boss Ian Evatt has urged his lowly side to be more ‘clinical’ against Wednesday.

The Seasiders headed into the weekend just above the drop zone, though they have won two of their last three in league and cup.

“In those games, and in all the games, we’ve had spells where we’ve done really well,” said Evatt, who has been left lamenting a relapse in defender Fraser Horsfall’s recovery from an ankle injury.

“We have scored goals, but we should have scored more with what we’ve done.

“And, in turn, that then relieves pressure on the defensive side of things – not just the backline but on the whole team.”

READ MORE: Sheffield Wednesday point to lack of ‘progress’ behind Henrik Pedersen sacking