"The players brought energy to the pitch": Pedersen praises Wednesday squad despite 1-0 Wrexham loss
The Wednesday boss heaped praise on his players - after a 'difficult week' that saw the loss of Captain Barry Bannan
Sheffield Wednesday suffered a narrow defeat at Hillsborough as Wrexham secured a 1-0 result in the Championship.
Sam Smith’s goal, his fourth in six league matches, was enough for Wrexham to earn three points and climb back into the play-off places. However, Wednesday manager Henrik Pedersen expressed pride in his team’s performance despite the loss.
“It’s been a difficult week for us with Barry Bannan leaving and the talk around transfers, not knowing if players will leave or they won’t," Pedersen said.
“Despite that, the players brought energy to the pitch today against a very strong Wrexham team with lots of talented individuals who are fighting for the play-offs.
“In the first half, they had the ball more than us but we were compact defensively and I don’t think our keeper had a difficult save to make. We had a big chance from the high press with Jerry Yates.
“In the second half, it was very equal again. We had the big one-on-one chance with Bailey Cadamarteri and then they clear it off the line from the corner so we had chances to get back in the game.
“In general, I think it was a strong team performance. We showed more versatility and made more attacking runs in behind which is good to see.
“Defensively, I think we competed very well with them and to create two chances through our high press is very positive and I’m sure in the next games the goal will come for us.
“When we lose, I’m not always standing here saying we had chances to win the game but today I am. It feels disappointing because we did have chances to get something.”
Despite Wednesday's opportunities, Wrexham manager Phil Parkinson credited his team for battling through a tough game and noted the quality of Smith’s winning goal following Issa Kabore’s assist.