Coventry City v Sheffield Wednesday: Seeing if the kids are alright could be tie's saving grace

"It's not my choice," smiles Owls manager Danny Rohl. "Maybe you ask Coventry and they will say, 'Not again!'"

As when the clubs met in a fourth-round FA Cup tie last season which went to a replay, the teams will be much-changed, certainly Wednesday's. How could add some much-needed interest.

The talk around Hillsborough is on which players, if any, chairman Dejphon Chansiri will allow Rohl to sign as he looks to sprinkle stardust on his squad in the transfer window. But Rohl's job is not just about strengthening with the chequebook, but also on the training ground.

The German has dropped a heavy hint we could see another positional experiment in the Midlands as he looks to find a new left-back from within, but there could also be a sight of promising youngsters, perhaps beyond highly-rated 19-year-old goalkeeper Pierce Charles.

Charles played every game in a League Cup run which saw the Owls knocked out on penalties in the quarter-final at Premier League Brentford. Fellow academy products Gabriel Otegbayo and Sean Fusire were also in the starting line-up.

Since then, centre-back Otegbayo has made his first steps in Championship football, reaching the stage where he could be one of those rested on Saturday, rather than the respite. Midfielder Fusire has been loaned to Carlisle United.

It could mean opportunities for the next wave, although any minutes for Sam Reed seem likely to be from the bench days after he returned from a loan at Boston United.

"Everybody who trained well can get an opportunity but there's no guarantee," warns Rohl. "It's still, I won't say a normal game, but we'll take it very seriously.”

Without bringing in the kids en masse, it is clear he sees the value of creating pathways to the academy. Bailey Cadamarteri was the first, last season, and is now on loan at Lincoln City developing further.

"You need a group that is very open-minded but you have to be brave sometimes as a manager to put a young player in," argues Rohl.

"This is what I’ve tried with Gab. I put him in at first in the (League) Cup, he played a good game against Blackpool, then against Brentford he showed he is ready to go.

"Bailey was the same, I gave him the opportunity.

"With Sean, I gave him chances and we extended his contract because I see something in him but I see the challenge in this position. We have good players there and he needs a little bit of time so it makes more sense to loan him out and give him the opportunity to play minutes.

"You have to make bold decisions to give good players your trust and even when there are some mistakes you give them the chance again.

"It was important after the Middlesbrough game. It was not Gab's fault we were 3-0 down but I had to change something and take him out.

"But it was clear that as soon as possible I would put him in again to show him belief. This is also important because if you send him away again, you can not improve him.

"In the right moment we’ll extend his contract hopefully and we'll have the chance as his development goes higher to maybe sell such a player because then you have the chance to bring new young players in."

Otegbayo had a difficult first Championship start, hauled off at half-time at the Riverside on Boxing Day with Boro 3-0 up. But he has been a substitute in 2025’s first two games, and scored a crucial equaliser at home to Millwall last week.

"You get a good feeling when you've worked with him since the summer,” says Rohl of his return. “You get a feeling whether a player is nervous ahead of a game or calm, which kind of character he is.

"In the first games you have nothing to lose because no one expects anything. As you get more minutes, the expectation goes higher but this is exactly the process he needs.

"He is open to the coaches to develop details, he works hard every day and I think he enjoys the work.

"He enjoys defending. He can be a little bit of a firefighter in the box, tackling and everything."

And developing young players is not only about those who come through the academy.

"Gass (21-year-old winger Djiedei Gassama) is not our academy player but we've improved him – he still has more potential," says Rohl.

"That's the reason we took Charlie (McNeill, a 21-year-old released by Manchester United) in the summer. He now needs minutes, I know this.

"But especially if you play in a 5-2-3, his best position is more the '10' position (in the hole behind the strikers), he's not really available.

"Charlie keeps going with his work on the grass and his training performances are outstanding again and again. That's a big basic to improve these players."

That and the will to do it.