“I’m a tracksuit manager based on my wardrobe being horrendous!” he joked to The Wednesday Word.
The new Sheffield Wednesday boss will be hoping to make a winning start to his tenure when his side face Oldham Athletic at Boundary Park on Sunday.
On his first match in charge, Challinor said: “I’m really looking forward to it, mainly because it gives me the chance to get my first real eyes on the team from a dugout position.
“There will be information that we’ve given the players and I want to see how that has landed and whether they can carry those things out.
“It’s a competitive FA Cup tie and a game we would love to win to progress to the next round.
“Things then turn around really quickly. Between now and Christmas, we have got a run of Saturday-Tuesday matches and games against teams you expect to be near the top of the division competition for promotion.
“We have to hit the ground running. We’ve got to continue developing whilst winning to give ourselves a really good chance of being involved at the right end of the table.”
The tea-time FA Cup first round clash will be screened live on TNT Sports and Wednesday will be desperate to avoid an upset. Oldham have slipped to 18th in League Two, having have won just one of their last four matches. They are only three points above the relegation zone.
We’ve got to continue developing whilst winning to give ourselves a really good chance of being involved at the right end of the table.
But Challinor is taking nothing for granted against the Latics. “They’ve been a little up and down in terms of their results,” he said. “But they had a good result on Tuesday going to Northampton and winning.
“I don’t imagine playing on a Sunday at 5.15pm would have been the case if they (TNT Sports) thought it was going to be a walkover. It’s the FA Cup and everyone knows that can bring. There is always the potential for shocks.
“We’ve got to be Sheffield Wednesday. That’s the most important thing. We’ve got to concentrate on the bits that we need to do.
“We’ve got really good players and we need to go and perform for ourselves first and foremost and for the supporters. Undoubtedly, we’ll have a full away end behind us so we need to go show and show what we’re about.
“There will have been comments and things said about the team recently that aren’t nice. Let’s use that as motivation. The players should want to show the real version of themselves, a better version of themselves every single day. If we do that, hopefully we will progress the next round.”
All eyes will be on Challinor and it will be fascinating to see the team he selects in his first match in charge. But the former Stockport County chief insists the focus should remain firmly on the players.
If you can’t enjoy being a footballer, then you probably need to do something else.
“It’s not about me,” he said. “I will speak to all the players. Everyone has different drivers and different markers. We’ll do something with them as we as we get further down the line around their motivations and why they do it. We all do it for different reasons. For most people, family is a huge part and there are always special memories that you grow up holding onto.
“But it’s about going out and performing. We’re are in a brilliant job. If you can’t enjoy being a footballer, then you probably need to do something else. If you can’t enjoy being a footballer at Sheffield Wednesday and playing in front of 30,000 people, then I’d worry for you.
“It’s brilliant for us. The lads will go out there and perform and do their best. They will make some mistakes, of course, but I’m really intrigued to see what we’ve got from a pitch-side and dugout perspective. I’ve got true belief that we will produce a performance that will be fitting of everything that does happen on Sunday in terms of travel and the support we will get.”
So how will Wednesday line up? We know Challinor’s preferred system is a back three and he will be forced to make at least one change in defence, with Sil Swinkels suspended.
Di’Shon Bernard is expected to be involved after shrugging off a minor knee issue. He could join Ernie Weaver and Liam Palmer in the back three, with Liam Cooper unlikely to be risked. Ricardo Santos may have to settle for a place on the bench as Wednesday continue to carefully manage his return to full fitness.
Yan Valery and Max Lowe are poised to retain their wing-back berths while Jaden Heskey looks set to partner Barry Bannan in central midfield once again.
Further forward, Callum Slattery and Davis Keillor-Dunn were excellent for long stretches in supporting lone front man Mason Burstow against Blackpool last time out. Jamal Lowe is in line to return to the matchday squad after completing a three-match ban but he might have to bide his time before getting the chance to impress the new boss. Burstow has performed well in his last three outings and there are growing signs he could prove a major asset in in Wednesday’s promotion charge.
Challinor watched the Seasiders clash from the directors’ box. After a whirlwind few days in charge, he may be reluctant to make wholesale changes as he looks to transform Wednesday’s fortunes.
Predicted Owls XI vs Oldham Athletic (3-4-3): Maynard-Brewer; Palmer, Weaver, Bernard; Valery, Heskey, Bannan, M Lowe; Slattery, Keillor-Dunn, Burstow.
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