Alex Miller's Sheffield Wednesday column: League table before and after Massimo Luongo’s Owls return a remarkable reminder of contract debate

Disclaimer: This column comes touching wood, with fingers crossed. No cracks in the pavement have been trodden on and with that in mind no jinxing will take place here, thankyou very much.
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So with that firmly in mind; my word isn’t Massimo Luongo doing well for Sheffield Wednesday?

The Australian midfielder, he of monstrous ability never doubted since his switch from QPR in the summer of 2019, has played 11 consecutive League One matches for the club since he was rested for a home win over Morecambe on the first day of February. It’s the longest run of availability he has managed as an Owls player.

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The last time he sat out with injury was January 2. For someone with such a difficult injury record at S6 2022 is, dare we say it, going really rather well.

Massimo Luongo scored his first goal of the season in Sheffield Wednesday's 4-2 win over Cheltenham Town.Massimo Luongo scored his first goal of the season in Sheffield Wednesday's 4-2 win over Cheltenham Town.
Massimo Luongo scored his first goal of the season in Sheffield Wednesday's 4-2 win over Cheltenham Town.
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When Luongo returned to the side at the turn of the year Wednesday were eighth. The league table taken from matches since then has them third. 2022 is really rather going well for the team, too.

It’s coincided with the settling of Darren Moore’s new-look squad of course – the improvement in form of George Byers, Marvin Johnson et al – but that their huge upturn in form settles alongside Luongo’s presence is no coincidence.

Before his regular contribution they averaged 1.61 points per game. Since then, that average is just a tick under two per game. They score more goals with him in and around the side, too; 1.95 per game compared to 1.3 without.

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In many ways, he is the player that most makes Wednesday tick, his presence unlocking things in front of him.

“He’s perfect for me,” club captain Barry Bannan said back in November. “He plays that position really, really well. If you look through the squad, there are people that can play that position but it’s Massimo’s natural position.

“He thinks like a defensive midfielder, whereas when you put there people in there that are attack-minded like me, I’ve had problems when I want to get too involved going forward and others are the exact same.

“Mass is perfectly suited for that position which then frees me up to go and do what I want to do and like to do without having to think about the defensive side. He gives me that license to go ahead which benefits me and benefits the team.”

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Almost unprompted, Owls boss Darren Moore said in the days after Luongo’s new year return that there was no way he would be able to stay fit through the cut-and-thrust of a manic fixture schedule and that he would need to be carefully managed through the rest of the season.

In shorthand, it was an admission that it was felt Luongo would have to miss matches to play matches as the season wore on.

But the late, late transfer window exit of Lewis Wing and injury to midfield colleagues Fisayo Dele-Bashiru stripped Wednesday of that luxury and Luongo’s fitness was put to the test. It’s a test – disclaimer in mind – that he’s passed.

Massimo Luongo’s contract is up in the summer and a couple of months ago the question of whether he should be handed another one would have been met with derision by many.

Now? He’s making the best possible case.