Sheffield Wednesday manager Danny Röhl wants to progress next season and beyond as the German coach prepares for talks about the Owl’s future vision with club owner Dejphon Chansiri.
Röhl replaced former boss Xisco Muñoz at Hillsborough in October 2023 with the club bottom of the championship. Despite losing his first two in charge against Watford and Plymouth, Röhl recorded 14 wins from the following 32 league matches, as recorded by Transfermarkt.
Ultimately, the German’s success helped the Owls get within one point of securing their status in the second tier. If the Yorkshire outfit earns a point against Sunderland on Saturday, they will remain in the Championship for the 2024/25 campaign.
However, if the club avoids relegation this weekend, all eyes will be on next season and how the club can improve. This follows Röhl’s previous comments, as reported by the Times, where the former Bayern Munich assistant manager identified several areas of improvement the club must address.
Some of the Geman coaches’ wishes include training ground upgrades, following cancelled training sessions due to a lack of quality pitches. The 35-year-old also pointed to Ipswich Town’s recent success as an inspiration on how to progress in the Championship.
While Röhl’s immediate focus will likely be securing Sheffield Wednesday’s Championship safety, he has already hinted about longer-term plans for 2024/25. When speaking to the Star, the former defender suggested that talks with Chansiri could take place in the summer to decide on a shared vision to push the Owls up to higher levels.
“I need a clear strategy of what we can do and what we want to do, I am very hungry for more and when you feel the atmosphere in the stadium you can feel that everybody is hungry for more at this club.
“The experience of the Championship shows us we must be prepared for a tough season and I think the biggest mistake you can make is to think it is good enough what we are doing now.
“Now we must make the next step and for this, we must bring all the things together on the table and we must speak about this. We have a clear direction on what we have to improve and if we can do this I think we can go into a good pre-season, this is important. And then we go into the next season.”
Writer’s View
Röhl has made great strides with Sheffield Wednesday since October and brought consistency and calmness to the club. His coaching background at the likes of Bayern, RB Leipzig and the German National team shows his ambition and that he has an understanding of what it takes to reach elite levels.
Evidently, the German coach has lofty ambitions for his Sheffield Wednesday side and he clearly wants to progress, if the Owls avoid the drop. However, the 35-year-old could face several barriers to improving higher standards at Hillsborough, with 16 players out of contract and Chansiri’s previous dismissals of implementing a long-term plan.
