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Henrik Pedersen says Sheffield Wednesday‘s decision to sack him has come as a surprise as he wasn’t expecting the League One side to take this drastic step.

Two days ago, Sheffield Wednesday announced that the Dane left the club with immediate effect.

Matt Hamshaw, who replaced him started as the interim manager, started his spell with a 1-1 draw against Cambridge United on Tuesday.

Pedersen took charge of the Owls in July 2025, when the club was in financial turmoil for breaching multiple EFL regulations.

Good start to Sheffield Wednesday season 

Earlier this year, the 51-year-old explained the club’s financial situation makes his task more challenging. He had also refused to walk away from the League One side.

At that time, he said: “I can’t just abandon people. It’s so far from my nature. When I accepted the job, we knew it was going to be a difficult season.”

“So, of course, I can’t just tuck my tail between my legs and get away from this. I want to support and help them all the way. Of course I will. We can’t say that people come first and then just abandon ship.”

The club have enjoyed a good start to this season in the third division. In August, they lost to Bradford in the league and Wolverhampton Wanderers in the EFL Cup. Sheffield Wednesday then went on a nine-match unbeaten run under Henrik Pedersen’s orders.

Dane didn’t expect Sheffield Wednesday sacking

This season, the Owls lost three of their 12 league matches and two were against Notts County and Doncaster Rovers earlier this month.

Speaking to Denmark’s TV2, relayed by Campo, Henrik Pedersen cites these two defeats as the key reason for his sacking, which he’s finding it hard to accept.

He said: “I didn’t see it coming, I definitely thought there would be a longer string than losing two games after a strong, strong period. I was called in, and then it was done. It was a short process.”

“I knew it would be a difficult start with 18 new players and League One having 46 games in total, so there’s not much time to train. But we’ve been really stable and have grown a lot. After nine unbeaten games and then losing two, it’s of course a shock to be fired on the basis of that.”

HENRIK PEDERSEN
Managerial career statistics · All competitions
Sport Witness
Club Years Games Wins Draws Losses Win %
HB Køge 2014–2015 59 23 15 21 39.0%
Eintracht Braunschweig 2018 14 2 5 7 14.3%
Strømsgodset 2019–2021 49 13 15 21 26.5%
Vendsyssel FF 2021–2023 82 30 21 31 36.6%
Sheffield Wednesday 2025–2026 65 10 17 38 15.4%
TOTAL — CLUBS LISTED 269 78 73 118 29.0%
Scope: Competitive senior first-team matches for the clubs listed. Excludes assistant, advisory and youth coaching roles. His earlier Red Bull Ghana role is excluded because a complete verified match record is unavailable.
Results: Penalty shoot-outs are counted as draws; win percentages are rounded to one decimal place.
Sheffield Wednesday: Final match against Doncaster Rovers on 24 October 2026; departure confirmed on 25 October.
Sources: Published managerial career records; Sheffield Wednesday official club statement.
Updated: 28 October 2026.
SPORT WITNESS

Henrik Pedersen’s Sheffield Wednesday record: 

  • Matches: 65
  • Wins: 12
  • Draws: 15
  • Losses: 38
  • Goals scored: 65
  • Goals conceded: 113

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