Fisayo Dele-Bashiru is ‘expected to perform’ for Sheffield Wednesday regardless of contract situation

The young midfielder has come in for a bit of criticism of late amongst the Owls fanbase, with some fans questioning his recent performances given the fact that there is still no end in sight with regards to his contractual situation.

‘Fizz’ has now entered into the last six months of his deal at Hillsborough, and there has been plenty of interest both domestically and internationally in the 21-year-old on the back of what was a fine start to the 2022/23 campaign.

His goals and assists have dried up of late, however, and his manager admits that there may be an element of his current situation being somewhat of a ‘distraction’ for him.

“Fizz is somebody that we talk to every day in training,” Moore explained. “He’s a young player who is really developing in the game. And these kinds of talks, and contractual situations, can perhaps be a distraction – but one thing he knows is that his manager is with him every step of the way. And I’ll try to keep him grounded, understanding the situation, and understanding that – even though everything is going on – he’s still contracted and expected to perform.

“He's only really young in football years, so there are things that will go for him or go against him, but it can’t be deemed a distraction. The big thing for me is talking to him every day, making sure we’re breaking down his game and putting it back together, and making sure there’s an understanding about his role and responsibilities.

“I’ll continuously do that with him, and work on the training ground to see that improvement from him.”

Only Josh Windass, Barry Bannan and Michael Smith have picked up more goals and assists than ‘Fizz’ (8) this season in all competitions, and only two players have made more appearances (26).

The likes of AC Milan, PSV Eindhoven and Antalyaspor have all been linked with the former Manchester City youngster, while Blackpool had a couple of approaches for him rebuffed over the summer.

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