Alan Biggs' Sheffield Wednesday Column: Why I'd be surprised if Jordan Rhodes isn't offered chance to resurrect his Owls career after loan spell at Norwich City

It's a talking point only partly obscured by the uplift of an FA Cup fourth round visit to Chelsea after a gritty first win for the new managerial win in a tricky replay at Luton.

The one-time prolific former Huddersfield and Blackburn striker is due back anyway in the summer after a season-long loan at Norwich.

Was that necessary? For all the hindsight of Rhodes' revived form with a promotion-chasing team and Wednesday's struggle, yes, I still believe it was. For whatever reason, it just wasn't going to happen at Hillsborough. Then.

Now is different. Effectively, Rhodes can be like a player on a close-season trial under the gaze of Steve Bruce.

And it's not only because senior coach Steve Agnew happens to be the player's uncle that you can foresee a desire to finally click the Rhodes' goal machine into place at S6.

In fact, it's a very attractive shot to nothing. The fact is Jordan has 218 goals to his name, including three for Scotland. He's not 29 until July and should be at his peak.

Much could depend, of course on how he feels and how he finishes the season in Norfolk. Currently he tallies nine goals there, including a late equaliser at West Brom last Saturday - pretty healthy considering he's not a regular starter.

Two things. If Norwich go up, I think it's unlikely, considering Rhodes' non-experience at the level, that they would see him as a buying target for the Premier League.

Should they miss out then only a high volume of goals between now and then would make him attractive for a second attempt. And Wednesday's demands, much raised in that event, would have a decisive say.

Currently the Owls could scarcely redeem the club record £8m they paid Middlesbrough. At Hillsborough, including the initial loan, Rhodes managed just 10 goals across 55 appearances.

There would be nothing to lose from a close look, at least. Hopefully in a team shape that offers more supply across the box and a much earlier delivery than in the ponderous pattern of his last spell here.

It was so obviously unsuited to Rhodes and this column made a point at the time that, to change that, the team needed to bend to him rather than the other way around.

Players of his natural talent don't suddenly lose their ability, as he's done enough at Norwich to show. If he recovered that consistently he'd be worth far more than anything on the table at this point.

The clincher for me is that Bruce was known to be interested in taking Rhodes to Aston Villa last season.

Right now Wednesday don't have a real predator in their ranks. Other than the long injured Gary Hooper whose future is uncertain. Signing one would be costly. 

Leading scorer Lucas Joao, with eight goals, is a mixed bag of talent, sometimes brilliant but often erratic. No-one seriously challenges him or Adam Reach (seven), more of a long-range specialist.

There can be no doubt that Bruce will be looking to all areas for improvement but I think he will be alive to this potential solution within.

Rightly defence is the first priority, underlined by last Saturday's 3-0 defeat at Norwich - which may be no bad thing in the long term in that it mocked fanciful hopes of promotion this season and pointed to a squad overhaul long needed.

But the fact is Wednesday haven't been scoring enough goals either, even during Lee Bullen's undefeated four-match run. It's just 32 goals in 27 Championship games - and never more than one in any of the last eight matches in all competitions (total of six).