Former Sheffield Wednesday favourite Fernando Forestieri unveiled in fresh transfer switch

The 31-year-old Argentine, who represented Italy at youth level, has completed a switch to Malaysian side Johor Darul Ta’zim in a deal that was first reported by The Star last week.

The Malaysian giants, who play in a brand new 40,000 seater stadium and are backed by the Crown Prince of Johor, are also known as the Southern Tigers and have won the last eight Malaysian titles. They announced the completion of the deal on Twitter.

Despite fan debate over whether the former Owl would be a worthwhile addition to Darren Moore’s squad, it is understood a reunion was never a consideration at S6.

Forestieri will tackle the Asian Champions League alongside Johor’s domestic challenges after the Malaysian season kicks off towards the end of the month.

Among his new teammates is former Sheffield United and Leeds United man Shane Lowry, who joined the club earlier this year. Former Wednesday youngster Manuel Hidalgo is at rivals Sri Pahang FC.

A fan favourite at Wednesday, Forestieri spent five headline-grabbing years at Hillsborough from 2015 to 2020 and was revered as the side’s central attacking force as the Owls qualified for back-to-back Championship playoff campaigns in 2016 and 2017.

He was released by Garry Monk alongside a number of other long-serving players in the summer of 2020 having scored 40 goals and bagging 18 assists in his 134 games for the Owls.