Fernando Forestieri factor key to Sheffield Wednesday's winless run

The term one-man team is meaningless, but some players are harder to replace than others in a well-oiled team, and top scorer Forestieri falls into that category.

Of the five games Wednesday have failed to win, the 26-year-old Argentinian has harshly been sent off twice – at Preston North End and Hull City – while sitting out the other three matches due to suspension.

Three draws, the latest a 0-0 stalemate at Brighton on Tuesday night – plus two defeats – have left Wednesday clinging onto sixth-spot in the Championship.

They travel to Nottingham Forest tomorrow knowing they need a win quickly if they are not to be overhauled by a chasing pack, including Ipswich Town, Cardiff City and Birmingham City. “It’s good news for us that Fernando is back,” said Owls head coach Carlos Carvalhal. “He’s an important player in our team and he is a goal-scorer. We are, of course, more strong when we have all the players.

“When a player misses out, it is bad for the player but we can’t cry about something we don’t have.

“In my life, I deal with the things I have in my hands and that is the reality.

“When one player misses a game, we have other players and must give confidence to them.”

Asked about the mood of Forestieri – who wrongly picked up bookings that led to two yellow cards at Deepdale and the KC Stadium – Carvalhal replied: “He will give an answer on the pitch.”

Having scored just once in the last five games – a 1-1 home draw with QPR – it seems certain Forestieri, top scorer with 12 this season, will start tomorrow.

If Carvalhal was reticent to talk up Forestieri at yesterday’s pre-match conference, he also tried to draw a line under some controversial refereeing decisions which have cost the Owls dearly in their winless run.

“We don’t have any crisis at Sheffield Wednesday,” he said. “We know exactly why we lose points and that’s why we gave a good answer at Brighton.

“If you look at the scores, we have not been winning but let’s go deep to understand why we haven’t been winning.

“Everybody knows why we haven’t been winning. I can’t talk about it or I will say something.

“We can’t take refereeing decisions out of the situation. We are talking about very serious things which could have made things very different.”

Forestieri’s absence has given fellow forward Lucas Joao first-team opportunities, and the Portuguese striker – who could be included in Portugal’s Olympics squad this summer – has impressed.

The 22-year-old burst into the scene at Hillsborough, netting against Arsenal in a 3-0 League Cup shock that saw Joao make national headlines.

But since netting three goals in two games against Huddersfield Town and Blackburn Rovers, Joao has struggled to find the target, netting just once in 18 outings.

Carvalhal admits the 22-year-old striker – who has been twice capped by Portugal this season – struggled to maintain his impressive early form.

But in recent weeks he has improved his work-rate and attitude, and will be needed to add to his eight goals in the coming weeks. “When he arrived, he started okay and then improved,” reflected Carvalhal. “He had a period of two months which was not so good and he came down.

“But in the last three weeks, he has come back to be more strong than before and is training very well which is why he started at Brighton.”

Tomorrow he comes up against another young Portugal striker, Forest’s Nelson Oliveira, and Carvalhal believes his fellow countrymen will benefit from playing in English football.

He said: “He (Oliveira) is doing good. His potential has always been there and he has shown the real potential that he has. He has played well.

“If you can play in England, you can play in all the countries because it is especially very tough for the strikers.

“If you play well here, you will be ready for the national team. It has been good for both of them that they are playing at this level.”

Wednesday midfielder Barry Bannan has been included in Scotland’s squad to face the Czech Republic in a friendly in Prague on March 24. In opposition, will be his Owls team-mate, left-back Daniel Pudil.

“It’s brilliant and of course I’m delighted to be called up again,” said Bannan.

“It’s any young Scottish boy’s dream to play for their country and to be able to do that 20 times already, it’s great to be involved again. I have to thank Sheffield Wednesday for their part in giving me the platform to show what I can do.”

Leeds United duo Liam Cooper and Liam Bridcutt have also been named in Scotland’s squad for the home friendly with Denmark on March 29.