Garry Monk wants Sheffield Wednesday focused on more than just survival despite 12-point deficit

Even before a ball is kicked, Sheffield Wednesday are 12 points adrift in the Championship, but manager Garry Monk insists they cannot just think about survival this season.
AMBITION: Garry Monk does not want Sheffield Wednesday just to set their sights on avoiding relegation this seasonAMBITION: Garry Monk does not want Sheffield Wednesday just to set their sights on avoiding relegation this season
AMBITION: Garry Monk does not want Sheffield Wednesday just to set their sights on avoiding relegation this season

The Owls have been served with a points deduction for breaking Football League profit and sustainability laws over the sale and lease-back of Hillsborough to the club's owner Dejphon Chansiri. The club are appealing, but for now they should probably work on the basis that it will stand.

Such a punishment will frame their season but not, says Monk, their ambitions.

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“Who knows what a successful season will be?” he said when asked. “We're just going to take it one game at a time. We know what we need to do.

“There will be certain stages we need to achieve, of course, we're trying to overcome the 12-point deficit as quickly as we can, then trying to get to the safety mark (usually seen as 50 points) is the next step and if you can reach that early, you look beyond that. But right now the first two steps are the most crucial.

“If we can get out of that 12-point deficit and be in good contact with the teams above, that's the first stage.

“That's just realistic. It's a game at a time, concentrate on that first bit.

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“We're not going to go into the games just thinking about surviving. We've asked for the demands (from each other) to be more than that.

“The reality of what we're doing is there but we can't think like that – we have to think of bigger and more. If you do that, the standard is higher.

“We've tried to set that tone and that mentality. We know the reality of what we're trying to do but the actual mentality has to be bigger and better than that.”

The Owls start their campaign with a trip to Cardiff City on Saturday.

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