Sheffield Wednesday 
The Odds – (Via-William Hill)
League Winners: 40/1
Promotion: 10/1
Relegation: 4/1
The Background
After hovering nervously over the Championship trap door, there was little to enjoy for Wednesdayites. Fans will however take heed from a fairly strong end to the season. Originally, the year began as a nightmare for the club and relegation to League 1 was a distinct possibility as a winless run stretched up to the 2nd of November. Thankfully for the Owls, it proved to be case of, ’13, lucky for some’ as after 12 winless matches, the rot was ended with a 5-2 win over Reading. It was all a little too late for Dave Jones as he was sacked in December after having been unable to register more than one win all season. Stuart Gray took over as a caretaker and in doing so, guided the club to an eight game unbeaten run beginning on Boxing Day which featured a 6-0 win over fierce Yorkshire rivals Leeds. Wednesday had steadied the ship and finished the season in 16th place.
The Transfers
Ryan Croasdale and Paul McElroy have joined up with the side in the window. Premier League goalkeeper Kieren Westwood has also joined Wednesday from Sunderland to offer experience between the sticks and provide Chris Kirkland with competition. Sam Hutchinson has also joined from Chelsea and other Premier League youngsters have joined including Matt Young from Southampton and Ed Sanders from Stoke City. Meanwhile Reda Johnson has gone to Coventry City, Danny Mayor to Bury, Taylor McKenzie to Notts County and Adam Davies to Barnsley.
The Star Man
Jacques Maghoma will be a highly influential player in the upcoming season for Wednesday. The winger who joined the Owls at the start of the campaign is major threat going down the wing and his pacey bursts of speed can help to give defenders a torrid time. His ability to cut inside and shoot is another quality to not overlook as the Frenchman could be a key performer in Wednesday’s upcoming campaign.
The Gaffer
Stuart Gray or ‘The Caretaker’, as he can be more commonly known, has enjoyed caretaking managerial stints with Villa, Wolves, Burnley and Pompey. After impressing last year, he got the job on a permanent basis in charge of Wednesday and is now gearing up for his first full season at the helm. He will be keen to implement his own tactics and playing styles and with a big budget from The Owls’ new owner he could enjoy an interesting season in charge.
The Fan – Charlie Sharpe (Twitter @THEsharpey)
Thoughts on last season?
Last season had very few high points for us. It was a scary season where we spent most of it in or around the relegation zone. Before Christmas I was convinced we were heading into League One as the team was playing poorly and the manager Dave Jones appeared to have no idea about how to change our fate and poor form. He even started criticising and shutting out players that he had brought into the club. But then everything got better… Dave Jones was sacked and Stuart Gray was appointed caretaker manager and our form lifted. We started to look like a totally different team with a more organised defence and always likely to score goals, especially with Connor Wickham in on loan from Sunderland and running riot up front for us. All of this was evident when we thrashed local rivals Leeds United 6-0 at Hillsborough in front of the Sky TV cameras and I’m sure many Wednesday fans will remember this as the highlight of a otherwise poor season. Our form at the end of the season wasn’t great and as we had practically guaranteed our Championship safety with several matches remaining our season limped to a close.
Hopes for this season?
This season should be an interesting one and I’m very much looking forward to seeing how it unfolds. We now have a brand new rich owner called Hafiz Mammadov who owns FC Lens in France and has shares in Atletico Madrid and it’s an exciting time to be a Wednesday supporter. Some fans are getting carried away and dreaming of promotion now that we have money, and why not? We’ve not had an easy ride over the last decade or so and had very little to cheer about. At the minute it’s hard to judge how we’ll do as our squad isn’t complete yet but it is encouraging to see that we have now started making higher quality signings than we’re used to. I’d be delighted if we could have a season well away from the drop zone and don’t flirt with relegation so midtable would do for me!
Fears for this season?
Well after two seasons back in the Championship where we have had to scrap to remain in the division it’s always a fear for Wednesday that we’ll do the same again or even worse actually be condemned to League One – it doesn’t want thinking about! Another fear would be that our takeover falls through and isn’t ratified by the football league but we’re all hoping that it’s just a formality.
Player to look out for?
This is a bit of a tricky one as our squad is currently quite small as we await new signings but I’m going to say to look out for a couple of our younger players who have come through the academy. Liam Palmer is a natural football and looks technically able to play anywhere on the pitch, he has aneye for a pass and reads the game very well. Last season he played almost every match for us and proved a very capable deputy for the injured Lewis Buxton and spent most of the season playing right back for us. His ‘position’ is usually central midfield and towards the end of the campaign wedid see him play some matches back there when Buxton was fit again but it will be interesting to see how he does this coming season after a promising first full season for us where he picked up numerous player of the season awards from the fans. Another player to watch out for is Caolan Lavery who is a striker but played mainly out wide for us last season as he broke into the first team following a successful loan spell at Plymouth. He looks anatural finisher and is an exciting prospect with some brilliant goal celebrations.
Rate your manager out of 10
I’m going to give Mr Gray a strong 8. He transformed our season using mainly the same players for had been playing so poorly for the first half of the season under Dave Jones. He is most comfortableas a coach rather than a manager and for that reason he is our first manager to be given thetitle ‘head coach’ rather than manager. We were all pleased when Gray’s job was announced as safe when the takeover went through and we’re looking forward to seeing how he does with the chance to make his own mould on the squad and bring his own players in.
Away Day you’re looking forward to?
I’m really looking forward to the trip to Brighton on the opening day of the season as I’m yet to visit their stadium yet as we usually end up playing them on a Tuesday night. The first match of the season is always exciting with a brilliant atmosphere and I can’t wait for the new one to kickoff.
What position will you finish?
As I’ve mentioned earlier it’s hard to judge how our season will pan out as our squad isn’t complete yet but I’m going to go for midtable but hopefully sitting just inside the top half, I’ll go for 11th place.
