Henrik Pedersen reflected on the progress Wednesday have made in recent weeks, despite defeat at Southampton this afternoon.

The Owls boss said: “The boys invested everything they had in the game, our third this week.”

He added that the Saints didn’t have to work very hard for their three goals and that it was disappointing to concede goals early in both halves.

However, Pedersen has been generally pleased with the progress of his small squad, saying: “We want to win, we always want to win but also need to be happy for the progression in our defending, now it is in the right direction for the third game in a row.

“We see again against a team like Southampton, they are so good in their individual quality that everything has to be perfect, otherwise we will be punished.

“We have seen in the last three matches that we can compete with West Brom, Norwich and today with Southampton in many phases of the game. We are now stronger on the ball than we were three to four weeks ago. We have taken some big, big steps as a team and we have to be happy with this.”

On the upcoming international break, the manager said: “Everyone needs a rest, we are very, very tired. I can only have the biggest respect for the boys, how they have worked together, stayed together and the discipline and commitment of this group is fantastic.

“Now we need to rest and then look forward to our next game, a lot.”