Defensive duo add to Sheffield Wednesday's injury woes

SHEFFIELD WEDNESDAY head coach Jos Luhukay has fitness doubts over defensive duo Daniel Pudil and Frederico Venancio and forward Lucas Joao ahead of Tuesday night's home game with Ipswich Town

Pudil came off with an ankle injury in Saturday’s 4-0 loss at Bristol City and Venancio and Joao also picked up knocks.

Better news saw Tom Lees come through with no ill effects following his first-team return from the bench at Ashton Gate after being out since November with a groin injury.

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Luhukay added: “We must wait until tomorrow. Daniel is a question for tomorrow. He must be 100 per cent.

Sheffield Wednesday manager Jos LuhukaySheffield Wednesday manager Jos Luhukay
Sheffield Wednesday manager Jos Luhukay

“Frederico Venancio and Lucas Joao also have problems. I must wait on these three players. We are training this afternoon and I must decide after training if they can be in the squad and play 100 per cent against Ipswich.

“If they cannot make it tomorrow, we hope they can be fit for Saturday.

“Lees has gone in a very good direction in the last weeks and months. He’s in a very good physical shape.”

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Meanwhile, Luhukay says that Sam Hutchinson and Joost van Aken could be back in the first team fray later this month, with both stepping their fitness work.

Sheffield Wednesday manager Jos LuhukaySheffield Wednesday manager Jos Luhukay
Sheffield Wednesday manager Jos Luhukay

He added: “We must have a little bit of patience.

“I think in the next two or three weeks when everything is going well, Joost van Aken and Sam Hutchinson are two players who are going in a good direction. The next step is that they try to play in the Under-23s. When that goes very well, they can next be an option for us in the next two to three weeks.

“He (Hutchinson) now one and a half week (trained with the team). He started the same day as Joost van Aken. It was a little bit difficult last week with training. We had the game at Swansea and then we played on Saturday. Training with the team and winter was coming with the snow so it was a little difficult to train on the field outside.

“We hope in the next days we can train normal and Sam and Joost make the next steps in the recovery to come back.”