We use adjoint-based gradients to analyze the sensitivity of turbulent wake past a D-shaped cylinder at Re = 13000. We assess the ability of a much smaller control cylinder in altering the shedding frequency, as predicted by the eigenfrequency of the most unstable global mode to the mean flow. This allows performing beforehand identification of the sensitive regions, i.e., without computing the actually controlled states. Our results obtained in the frame of 2-D, unsteady Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes compare favorably with experimental data reported by Parezanović and Cadot [J. Fluid Mech.693, 115 (2012)] and suggest that the control cylinder acts primarily through a local modification of the mean flow profiles.