Every match is like a cup final for Sheffield Wednesday now, says Daniel Pudil

Daniel Pudil says he and his Sheffield Wednesday team mates have to now treat each of their remaining nine games as if they were a cup final as the quest for a place in the play-offs hots up.
Owls Daniel PudilOwls Daniel Pudil
Owls Daniel Pudil

Having gone five matches without a win, the Owls turned in one of their most impressive displays of the season last Saturday when they took apart Nottingham Forest at the City Ground.

The 3-0 win over Forest, with goals from Aiden McGeady, Gary Hooper and Marco Matias, kept Carlos Carvalhal’s side in the top six, but Wednesday are just one point ahead of Cardiff and Ipswich, while Birmingham in ninth are four points away, though have a game in hand.

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That makes every game between now and the end of the campaign hugely important.

Charlton Athletic - a team the Owls lost to earlier in the season - arrive at Hillsborough on Saturday for the next test of Wednesday’s promotion credentials, and Czech international Pudil recognises that dropping points at any stage could prove costly.

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“It was nice to get back to winning ways as we didn’t win for five games,” he said.

“It was nice to get the three points but we have to keep going. We have got nine games left and every one will be really important.

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“We have to treat them like a final and go game by game. We have to do everything right and play well. If we lose some points, it can cost us a lot.”

Pudil adds that victory in Nottingham has given Wednesday a huge lift, following that run, even if they had collective belief that the wins would come round again.

“We never lost our confidence even when we went a few games without a win,” he said.

“But Forest are a good side so obviously our confidence has gone up since beating them. It was a great win and we are looking to build on it now.”

Wednesday will be without Barry Bannan for the next three games after a failed appeal against his red card picked up last week.