Sheffield Wednesday: The Sunderland issues Danny Rohl must solve - View | OneFootball

Sheffield Wednesday manager Danny Rohl must learn from his side's 4-0 defeat at Sunderland on Sunday.

Sheffield Wednesday suffered a 4-0 defeat against Sunderland at the Stadium of Light in the Championship on Sunday.

It had been a positive start to the season for the Owls with a 4-0 win over Plymouth Argyle on the opening weekend and a 2-1 victory at Hull City in the EFL Cup, but they were emphatically beaten by the Black Cats at the weekend.

Goals from Dennis Cirkin, Eliezer Mayenda, and Luke O'Nien gave Sunderland a three-goal lead inside 24 minutes, and Mayenda scored his second just after the break to extend the hosts' advantage.

Wednesday manager Danny Rohl took full responsibility for the defeat, and he urged his side to stick together ahead of the game against Leeds United at Hillsborough on Friday night.

"I’ll take the responsibility for such a defeat as a manager, I’ll look to see if we did everything right to prepare for such a game. But this is football, it’s now important that we show a reaction and stay together," Rohl told The Star.

"It’s always easy when you win, then you have the togetherness, but today we have to show that we can stay together after a big defeat. We have to learn from this, it’s a process. We’ll have good games, we’ll have games like today."

Danny Rohl must learn lessons from Sunderland defeat

While it was an incredibly poor performance, Owls supporters should not be too worried about the defeat at the Stadium of Light, but as Rohl said, it is important that lessons are learned.

Rohl will be concerned that, despite significant changes in the squad this summer, familiar problems from last season were on display, and they will need to be addressed if his side are to achieve the top-half finish many are expecting from them this campaign.

The issue most urgently in need of fixing is the Owls' inability to defend set pieces, with questionable marking contributing to both Cirkin and O'Nien's goals against Sunderland.

Wednesday frequently conceded from set pieces in the second half of last season and with that vulnerability being exposed once again, it is one area in desperate need of improvement, particularly with Leeds United and Millwall to come in the next two games.

However, it was not just defensively that the Owls struggled on Sunday, and while Rohl's bold, attacking approach should be commended, the German will need to find a better balance in midfield to ensure his side have sufficient protection.

Svante Ingelsson has enjoyed an impressive start to his Wednesday career, but his willingness to get forward left Barry Bannan on his own in midfield at times, and although the Scotsman remains hugely influential, he cannot be expected to perform the holding role at the age of 34.

That allowed the Black Cats' midfield of Dan Neil, Chris Rigg and Jobe Bellingham to dominate, and Rohl should consider taking a more pragmatic approach for future away games by deploying Nathaniel Chalobah, who is yet to feature this season due to injury, alongside Ingelsson and Bannan.

Sheffield Wednesday must develop a stronger mentality after conceding

While Rohl has done an outstanding job since taking over at Wednesday, one criticism that has been levelled at him during his tenure is the way his side have collapsed on occasions after conceding the first goal.

The defeat to Sunderland was the fifth time the Owls have lost by four or more goals under Rohl, and although some heavy defeats may have been expected last season, that will not be accepted this time around.

Wednesday conceded three goals in just 13 minutes in the first half at the Stadium of Light and Rohl must instill a stronger mentality in his players to hold firm after going behind, particularly away from home.

Rohl will demand a response against Leeds on Friday night, and although it will be a tough test, Daniel Farke's side are under pressure after failing to win any of their opening three games in all competitions, so it is a good opportunity for the Owls to get back to winning ways and restore some of the early season positivity.