Who Needs Mourinho?

'If Mourinho had been here, I don't think he could have done any better.' - Owls boss Brian Laws following the Owls' Championship survival against Norwich on Sunday.

I doubt Laws was putting himself on a par with the former Chelsea boss and European Cup winning manager, hey, even our old friend Mr Warnock from the red and white half of the city wouldn't go as far as that.

But Laws insists his troops have a lot to learn from the season, which was ultimately a failure for an Owls side favoured for a play-off spot at the start of the season.

'We're going to learn a lot from this year. We've had to put up with a lot, on the field and off it, you name it, it's been thrown at us and we've had hurdle after hurdle to climb and we've got over every one,' Laws said at the post-match press conference.

'We've come out the other end. We've got a good squad of players here, if everybody's fit, and if we can add one or two to bolster that I believe we will have a much, much better year next year.

'I'm not patting myself on the back; if Mourinho had been here, I don't think he could have done any better.'

Laws' future could well be in doubt should a takeover happen at S6 over the pre-season, Alan Shearer's name was being banded around Hillsborough before the Owls' clash with Barnsley earlier in the season.

But the Owls' gaffer is pleased to finally get the season out of the way and secure Wednesday's Championship status in the final game of the season.

'I'm glad it's over, that's for sure,' he continued.

'This week feels like a month waiting for that game to come about, knowing that we were going to have a sell-out and that the crowd would get right behind us as they have done all year.

'The nervousness within the game showed with everybody, particularly in the first half. Norwich have come here and I said they wouldn't lie down, they'll come here with confidence to say 'we'll go and play our own game and take risks and attack at every moment we can.'

'They got an early goal but I always knew we'd bounce back because the resilience we have shown over the last 15 games. Every time we get a knock we bounce back,' Laws said.