Kieran Lee and tweak notes - Callum Slattery could hold the key to freeing Sheffield Wednesday
Sheffield Wednesday signed Callum Slattery on free agent terms in June following his departure from Motherwell.
Of all the new faces to have rocked up at Sheffield Wednesday this summer, there are varying degrees of excitement among the fanbase as to their arrivals and optimism is high.
They have come great in number, with more to follow, and history suggests only some will be a success. Some clubs, backed by stellar recruitment and smart coaching, find a way to buck the trend and Wednesday will hope to place themselves in that number. But studies have put the success rate of modern transfers at anywhere between 40 and 50 per cent.
In Louie Barry there is great expectation, high profile and expectation of excitement. Jordi Liongola offered moments of blitz down the right on debut over the weekend. Harry Gray showed glimpses of quality. Sil Swinkels offered periods of assurance in defence and Mason Burstow led the line with energy. There’s a new bloke called Barry Bannan whose assist felt comforting in its familiarity.
In a frontline squad of this size, all these names - and others - will be vital. Perhaps the most important piece of the puzzle will be Callum Slattery. The number 10 position will be a seminal one in how Henrik Pedersen is seeking to set up this Wednesday side and though the Owls were more direct in passages of their 1-0 Carabao Cup win over Bolton Wanderers, the free transfer addition followed-on bright performances in pre-season on Saturday.
The 27-year-old put up good numbers in possession, getting three shots off from range and completing 34 of his 39 passes. What was especially impressive were his efforts off the ball; a 100 per cent success rate on three tackles against which only Liongola (eight) bettered and two interceptions. Winning the ball in the opposition half will be a Wednesday ideal going forward. Pedersen’s movement of him into a deep-lying playmaker in the second half allowed the Owls to take more control of the match with a man advantage.
His midfield partner Bannan is a man of high standards but in conversation with The Star not long ago spoke with huge enthusiasm about Slattery’s signing - and having compared his playing style to that of Josh Windass likened the feeling of his early days to those he spent alongside another modern Wednesday favourite.
“He's been an amazing addition, he’s really fitted in as a person, he’s got a brilliant head first and foremost. And as a player, he's been top,” Bannan said. “I watched a lot of Scottish football last season so I knew he was a good player. But I’ll be honest with you, I was surprised at how good he was. It felt quite similar to when I got here in my first year here with Kieran Lee.
“It was a really similar feeling, where you know he's good but then you train with him and you think - wow, he's really good. I've been really impressed with him, lots of energy, hungry, never lets a training session slip by. He always gives his all and he's got quality as well. He's been really good in training and I’m looking forward to playing with him.”
From youth stardom with Southampton and England, with whom he enjoyed stellar international recognition and won the 2017 Toulon tournament to great acclaim, his career travelled north of the border following injury and so-so loan stints with De Graafschap and Gillingham. Down south again, there’s a reputation to build upon and in front of a bigger, more expectant crowd than he has played in front of outside of Old Firm visits.
Again, there is no guarantee of success with a new transfer, but early signs are that if Wednesday are to tick along as hoped this season, Slattery will be central to that mission. For a side so unable to muster a gallop going forward last campaign, goals are the order of the day and his invention will be required to unlock defences sent to Hillsborough in stoicism.
Tweaks are being made to how he goes about things, with Pedersen keen to bring discipline to his attacking output in what is expected to be a sophisticated mode of attack.
“After the Preston game, it was clear that he is an amazing player, but that he was running around too much when we were on the ball,” the Dane told The Star from their training camp in Budapest. “He ended up too often outside of the position where you can hurt your opponent. We had the first training in Hungary and we spoke about all the positions.
“How he developed that week and how many times since he has found good positions when they are pressing Barry and in other areas? It is great to see. In that number 10 pocket, he can be very good for us.”
A win in their opening day soft-launch against Bolton was much-needed. The season proper - and the Sheffield Wednesday careers of Slattery et all - begin for real this weekend.