Joost van Aken’s honest Sheffield Wednesday message after confirmed Owls departure

The defender will officially leave the Owls at the end of next month when his Wednesday contract expires, however it has already been confirmed that he has penned a two-year contract with Belgian Pro League outfit, Zulte Waragem.

Van Aken, 27, endured a difficult time at Hillsborough as injuries and a loan spell away meant that he leaves with just 33 appearances to his name, despite the hefty price tag that was paid out to Heerenveen to snap him up in 2017.

Now, as the centre back prepares to try and get his career back on track in Belgium, he was sent a farewell message to the club with whom he’s spent four years of his career, admitting that it didn’t quite go to plan.

Van Aken said on his official Instagram account, “I want to thank you for the past four years. It has been a period of ups and downs, as a club and personally. Due to injuries it did not turn out as I had hoped, but I am proud to have worn Wednesday’s shirt. I wish you all the best for the future.”

The Dutchman is one of 10 players on the club’s list of released players as Darren Moore looks to rebuild the side from League One next season, and he’ll certainly be hoping that things go better for him in Waregem than they did in Sheffield.

Zulte-Waragem finished 10th last season and narrowly missed out on the UEFA Europa League Play-Offs.

Former Sheffield Wednesday defender completes move to Greater Manchester

Thank you for reading this article, one of dozens we publish every single day to provide you with the best, most up-to-date and most informative coverage of YOUR club. This depth of coverage costs, so to help us maintain the high-quality reporting that you are used to from the football team at The Star, please consider taking out a subscription to our new discounted sports-only package. You'll find all the details at www.thestar.co.uk/subscriptions/sports.

Your support is much appreciated.