Sky Sports commentator Daniel Mann has been speaking on the latest edition of Sky Sports’ EFL Podcast about Sheffield Wednesday’s woes and other news from the Championship, League One, and League Two.
The Owls head into the final game of the season, knowing that a win against Derby County could keep them in the Championship for another season.
However, the club have had a rapid decline in recent years and were handed a six-point deduction earlier this season for breaking the EFL’s rules regarding the sale of Hillsborough.
Mann believes that one of the reasons that Wednesday are in such a mess is because they failed to sell players at the right time in the past.
He said: (14:36) “People talk about how teams work in the transfer market and they talk about how important it is to buy the right players.
“I think one of Sheffield Wednesday’s problems is that selling at the right time, at the right price is also a very important part of dealing in the transfer market, and they’ve shown reluctance to sell players when they’ve had the opportunity going back.
(15:05) “That has been a problem for Sheffield Wednesday, and that as much as anything has been a root of the problems they’re now facing.”
Do you think that Wednesday's problems are because they haven't been able to sell players?
No, there is more to it than that
Yes, that could explain everything
So far this season, Wednesday have won just 12 out of the 45 Championship games they’ve played, drawing 10 and losing 23 along the way (per BBC Sport).
TIF Thoughts on Mann’s comments…
Sheffield Wednesday finished in the Championship play-offs in consecutive seasons during the 2015/16 season and then the 2016/17 season.
After both of these seasons, there was interest from other clubs in some of Wednesday’s better players, and they kept hold of them, which in hindsight looks like a poor decision.
However, we are not convinced that the root of all their problems are down to not selling players at the right time, and there is probably more to it than that.
In other news: ‘A gross underachievement’ – Sky Sports pundit issues scathing assessment of Sheffield Wednesday