Birmingham City 2 Sheffield Wednesday 1: Owls let it slip and suffer the Blues

Sheffield Wednesday manager Carlos Carvalhal could not hide his disappointment after seeing his side fail to build on their midweek comeback win over Bristol City.
Gary Hooper puts Sheffield Wednesday ahead at St Andrews. Picture: Steve EllisGary Hooper puts Sheffield Wednesday ahead at St Andrews. Picture: Steve Ellis
Gary Hooper puts Sheffield Wednesday ahead at St Andrews. Picture: Steve Ellis

The home side came from behind to snatch the points after going behind to Gary Hooper’s goal.

Clayton Donaldson converted an 80th-minute penalty and then Lukas Jutkiewicz grabbed a stoppage-time winner to down Wednesday.

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“I do not remember one occasion when my goalkeeper Keiren Westwood had to make a real save before Birmingham’s two late goals,” said Carvalhal.

“This is why I am frustrated because in the game we created chances and didn’t score.

“I do not want to comment about the penalty. It is a referee’s decision.”

Carvalhal dismissed concerns about Wednesday’s away form as they have now gone 10 games on the road in all competitions without a victory.

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He said: “I am very happy with our form. We are playing fantastic, but not scoring. We again had five good chances against Birmingham.

“If we were not playing well I would be concerned. We play to win, but we need to improve our finishing.”

Carvalhal’s opposite numberGary Rowett praised the “brave” performance of his team and in particular the way substitute Jutkiewicz was on hand to score the vital second goal.

The former Burnley striker was highly complimented for his match-winning display, with Rowett saying: “I was really pleased for him. There have been a lot of things said about him and his goalscoring record over the last season and a half.

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“He has had a very bad injury and most of his appearances have been coming on as a substitute.

“He is a real team player and it was a fine example of our squad. The players who came off the bench won us the game.”

Rowett admitted that it was ominous when substitute Hooper gave Wednesday a 76th-minute lead.

It was Hooper who scored both goals for Wednesday last season to give the Owls a 2-1 win coming back from a goal down.

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“We owed them this result after what happened last season,” he said.

Birmingham: Legzdins, Spector, Morrison, Shotton, Grounds, Davis (Brown 63), Gleeson (Jutkiewicz 79), Kieftenbeld (Stewart 63), Maghoma, Donaldson, Adams. Unused substitutes: Robinson, Fabbrini, Cotterill, Trueman.

Sheffield Wednesday: Westwood, Palmer,Lees, Loovens, Reach, Wallace (Buckley 87), Lee, Bannan, Abdi (Hooper 65), Forestieri, Fletcher (Nuhiu 78). Unused substitutes: Jones, Hunt, Sasso, Dawson.

Referee: Scott Duncan (Tyne & Wear).