Carlos Carvalhal interview: Survival with Celta Vigo, his coaching epiphany, and talk of Sheffield Wednesday return

In an exclusive interview with Sky Sports, Carlos Carvalhal talks tactics, staying up with Celta Vigo in sensational style, and why, despite his success, he was ready to return to Sheffield Wednesday in League One this season if they had needed him…

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Thursday 6 July 2023 13:10, UK

When Sheffield Wednesday won promotion back to the Championship, they had a vocal supporter in Iberia. “I celebrated with my family,” Carlos Carvalhal tells Sky Sports. “But I wanted to be at Wembley. I still love Sheffield Wednesday.”

Their old boss has been on a wild ride since leaving the Owls, working in the Premier League with Swansea before transforming himself as a coach with success at Rio Ave, silverware with Braga and survival with Celta Vigo by beating Barcelona on the final day.

For all his success at the highest level in recent years, Carvalhal has a secret he is willing to share. The man who once dropped down to Portugal's third division and took Leixoes all the way to the cup final is still swayed by sentiment. «I am a romantic,» he says.

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«I want to tell you about that. I have had a lot of friendly messages from Sheffield Wednesday fans and someone asked if I had received an invitation to go back to Sheffield Wednesday this season. I have had no contact but there is something I will tell you.

»I was ready if Sheffield Wednesday did not go up to go back there and try to win promotion back to the Championship. I would have made myself a candidate for that job. I do not care about the money. If the club had needed me, I would have been there."

Carvalhal will not need to look elsewhere in League One. His reputation has rocketed since his