Danny Batth: Sheffield Wednesday interested in Stoke City's former Owls favourite

The Owls are desperate to bring in new defenders this window as they seek to bolster their ranks following a number of injuries at centre half in recent weeks, and Chey Dunkley’s latest problem means that they’re still very short on bodies for that position.

Players such as Haydon Roberts and Mark Beevers have been linked in recent weeks, and now it’s Batth’s name that has made it onto their list of reported targets – with the Stoke City man possibly available given that he will be out of contract in the summer.

Batth played 59 games for Wednesday during the 2010/11 and 2011/12 campaigns, helping the Owls earn promotion out of League One in his second loan spell and going on to make it into the Team of the Season and finish as runner up as the club’s Player of the Season – with many hoping that he would return once again the following year, however that didn’t happen.

Since then, the 31-year-old went on to make a name for himself at his boyhood club, Wolverhampton Wanderers, before heading to Middlesbrough on loan in 2018/19 and then leaving on a permanent deal to Stoke City in 2019.

The Star has previously reported that Wednesday were keen to get a big, experienced centre back through the door before the January transfer window closed, and Batth definitely ticks those boxes – and the fact that he’s played for the club before will serve as another bonus.

Wednesday are limited to free transfers and loans as part of the restrictions that they remain under, but with Batth out of contract in the summer there appears to be some hope that a deal could get done – either by agreeing a termination now or by sorting out a loan until the end of the 2021/22 campaign.

Batth has played 11 league games for Stoke in the Championship so far this season, but may have fallen down the pecking order following the arrival of Taylor Harwood-Bellis and Phil Jagielka, who are both centre backs themselves.

Win, lose or draw – Moore stays level whether Wednesday are soaring or slumping