Danny Röhl back in Germany – spells out immediate movements after Sheffield Wednesday season
The Owls finished-up their campaign with a 1-1 draw at Watford to add another point to a stellar away record and secure a 12th-place finish – and their highest league finish since their back-to-back play-off qualifications in 2016 and 2017. Speaking straight after the match, Röhl described his immediate plans and having spent so much time away from his young family since arriving in South Yorkshire, he wasted no time in getting back home.
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“At 6:30pm I will be sat on an aircraft and at around midnight I will arrive at my home,” he said. “My kids will be asleep but I will go in their room and say hello. In the morning I will get up and go for a run around the lake and I will enjoy the next days without preparing, without looking at video and all these things. I will turn my phone off – or I will try – I’m not sure if I can do this for too long!”
Over the past 18 months or so, Röhl’s two sons have taken Wednesday to heart along with the rest of the family. Ongoing speculation over the future of the Owls coach rolls on and will do until official word is put forward, but for now, his focus is set entirely on family time.
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“I am so far away so often from my kids,” he said in the week. “I see them sometimes but I can not see them every day growing up. It is maybe 10 times in the last 18 or 19 months and it is hard and this is the reason I am looking forward so much to having these six weeks together. We should use this time, every single minute.”
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The Owls boss, who took over the club in October 2023 and spearheaded a historic survival mission before stabilising in midtable this time out, watched on as his side earned a 1-1 draw at Watford to see out his first full season in management. This time last year Röhl signed a contract to last until 2027 but has battled through a turbulent period since, with Southampton having been knocked back over a compensation wrangle in a December approach he was keen on.
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Röhl told media in the last fortnight that he had already informed the club of his intentions heading into the summer and later stressed the need for quick clarity – for the club’s benefit. Southampton are understood to be return suitors for the young coach, while Leicester City and RB Leipzig have also been credited with interest.
“In general for me, the point that we should make is that we make a quick decision as soon as possible,” he told The Star in the moments after sharing extended moments with the away supporters at Vicarage Road. “My picture is clear, the club knows my picture and to continue in some ways it is important that it for everyone it becomes clear in which direction it goes. I cannot say more about this. This is the responsibility of the club, in which direction and what we announce. But my picture is very clear.
“It doesn’t matter what happens, if we got requests for players from a higher division, if we got requests for a manager from a higher division, I think we should be a little bit proud of this journey. Even if it feels not so good, even if there is disappointment, it is outcome from good work that we did in the last 18 or 19 months. In the end, everyone deserves a clear picture now. This is key, because the club is bigger than one person.”
A common Röhl theme in recent press engagements has been the encouragement to push Wednesday into action over forward decisions; over player contract talks, summer recruitment plans, pre-season and – no doubt – his own situation. The last summer managerial change at S6 saw stunted movement as Xisco replaced Darren Moore and it’s widely accepted that contributed to the worst league start in the club’s history. It’s clear the club can not afford a drawn-out affair once more.
Röhl continued: “For me it is clear, to make decisions for players, to extend contracts, to learn a pre-season in some detail, to carry on, it is very important. You do not come to the point where you stop something and we know what it means when you have late decision making.
