The Sheffield Wednesday manager Garry Monk has confirmed that Sam Winnall and Jordan Rhodes are continuing to train with the Owls first team.
Winnall and Rhodes are two of the players who have failed to make Monk’s squad in recent weeks.
Meanwhile, a trio of others, Keiren Westwood, Sam Hutchinson and David Bates, have been keeping up their fitness with the Under-23s, according to The Star.
But that is not the case for Winnall and Rhodes.
The Wednesday strikers Winnall and Rhodes. (Photo by Robbie Jay Barratt – AMA/Getty Images)
“They’re available and they’re training with us,” Monk told the official Sheffield Wednesday Youtube channel earlier [Thursday].
When asked if that is with first team, the 40-year-old replied: “Yeah, Sam [Winnall] and Jordan are.”
Monk had earlier explained that Westwood’s absence was down to injury – contrary to what the goalkeeper suggested on Twitter this week.
Being trolled online is never a nice experience. With the tragic events recently it’s given me the courage to speak out to put an end to the online abuse I’m receiving simply for doing my job. Clarity is important. Enough is enough. #MentalHealthAwareness #footballmentalhealth pic.twitter.com/41RhgG2mfF
— Keiren Westwood (@WestwoodKeiren) February 17, 2020
And on Hutchinson, he added: “I’ve said it before, my experience in changing rooms, understanding what you need.
“Sam [Hutchinson] is similar to Keiren, his availability and injuries he’s had. That continuity has not been there.”
Westwood and Hutchinson were also exiled during Jos Luhukay’s reign as manager, but were restored to the Wednesday eleven when Monk’s assistant, Lee Bullen, was placed in temporary charge.
The pair went on to feature regularly under both Steve Bruce and Monk, but Westwood last appeared for the Owls at the end of November, while Hutchinson has sat out five successive fixtures.