“That’s something for him to ponder on!” – Dominic Iorfa gives Darren Moore a Sheffield Wednesday dilemma after recent role tweak | OneFootball

Sheffield Wednesday have been enjoying a strong start to the League One campaign as Darren Moore’s men close in on the automatic places.

Wednesday picked up another win at the weekend as they beat Accrington Stanley 1-0, a win that saw them close the gap to second-place Ipswich Town to just a single point.

As well as performing in their league campaign, the Owls have also been performing in their cup games too. Moore’s side faced Premier League opposition in Southampton last week in the EFL Cup, and despite going out on penalties, Wednesday performed remarkable well.

Defender Dominic Iorfa played in that EFL Cup tie, and despite the disappointment of going out of the competition, he found the game “very enjoyable”.

Iorfa was the player who missed the key penalty in the 6-5 defeat, but he didn’t let that get in the way of the enjoyment he had that evening.

Wednesday took an early lead in the tie thanks to a goal from striker Josh Windass, but the League One side were pegged back just before halftime as James Ward-Prowse scored from the penalty spot.

Iorfa spoke after the game about his team’s performance and how much he enjoyed playing a Premier League team.

Iorfa told Yorkshire Live: “I think watching the game, there wasn’t much in it. I think it was a good team performance, there were a lot of positives to take away from the game.

“It was a different kind of test to what you get in our league – obviously we’ve got a lot of good players on our team, people like to showcase what they’re about but, in our league, a lot of teams set up to try and stop us.

“Whereas against Southampton, them being in a bigger league, they come to play their own game and stamp their authority which then means that we were allowed to play our own style as well. It was a fun game, very enjoyable.

Iorfa continued, saying that he was happy with how his own game went against such good opposition and joked that manager Darren Moore would have to give him more opportunities as a wide player.

“Yeah, I came off the pitch pleased with my performance, and I thought I played well – not just me though, everyone from the back, midfield, strikers did their part but for me, I enjoyed it, I relished it, and I thought I played well.

“I think you can say that [it being his best game of the season so far] because of the level of opposition. Southampton have had a lot of games this season but with them being Premier League opposition, I think it’s a fair comment.

“It’s something I like to do [get forward with the ball] when the opportunity arises, I’ve done it a few times this season. Stepping in when the space is there, and when Reece James came off for the last 15 minutes, the manager put me out to right wing-back so that allowed me to get forward as well.

“That’s something for him to ponder on! Obviously, my position is centre-back first and foremost but if I’m needed, if I need to fill in and step in to do a job, I’m happy to do it for the team.”

Quiz: 20 quiz questions about some of Sheffield Wednesday’s craziest ever results – Can you score 20/20?

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Who did Sheffield Wednesday’s record EFL victory come against?

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The Verdict

Despite them still being such a big club, you have to remember that Sheffield Wednesday are a League One team and don’t get to play teams like Southampton every week.

Therefore, cup games like this are always a big opportunity for the players to test themselves against better opposition. This is a different type of challenge that Iorfa isn’t used to, so to get 90 minutes against players like Ward-Prowse and Adam Armstrong is something he will have relished.

Wednesday gave a good account of themselves in the game, and only going out on penalties is a major positive. Moore’s main aim this season will be to get Wednesday back into the Championship, but rare opportunities like this are also what teams in League One look forward to and can be the springboard that they may need for their remaining campaign.