Sheffield Wednesday manager Garry Monk has insisted that the Owls will be needing to show patience over Fernando Forestieri and believes that the forward will improve his performances over the next few weeks.

Forestieri has endured a frustrating season so far, with the forward having only managed to make 11 Championship appearances for the Owls, which has been largely due to injury troubles and suspensions, but having got himself fully fit over the last few weeks the 30-year-old will be hoping for more involvement during the rest of the campaign.

The forward is out of contract at Sheffield Wednesday in the summer, and he will be needing to show what he can offer for the Owls during the rest of the season, having made his first start at Barnsley last weekend since starting in Monk’s side 3-1 win against Charlton Athletic back at the end of November.

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Speaking to the Sheffield Star ahead of the Owls’ trip to struggling Luton Town on Wednesday night, Monk suggested that he believes Forestieri will improve given regular minutes and that the club need to remain patient with the 30-year-old, as he looks to get back to his best.

He said: "He has been out for a long period. It has been a stop-start season.

"He was suspended when I came in here and then he picked up that injury for quite a long period. He is not going to be at his sharpest, but the more minutes he gets on his pitch will help him."

The verdict

Forestieri was once Sheffield Wednesday’s chief source of goals and creativity in the final third, but his influence over the side has steadily decreased over the past few years, with the forward managing just five and six goals respectively in each of the last two Championship campaigns.

That has not shown any real signs of changing so far this campaign, with the 30-year-old having managed to score only once in the league so far, and the Owls now have the likes of Steven Fletcher and Connor Wickham to rely on to lead the line up front.

The 30-year-old, though, still has plenty of ability left in him if he can manage to put together a consistent run of form and starts, and he showed flashes of his potential to improve the Owls’ productivity in the final third against Barnsley last time out.

Given the forward is out of contract in the summer, it will be vital that he starts to re-find his best form and Monk clearly has faith that the 30-year-old can come good for his side during the last few months of the campaign.