Run-out glimpse suggests Sheffield Wednesday may well have found themselves a player in Callum Slattery
Sheffield Wednesday’s friendly run-out against Stoke City saw a handful of new signing stand-out - not least Callum Slattery. Alex Miller reports from Vienna.
Not a great deal was known of Callum Slattery amongst the Sheffield Wednesday fanbase when his signing came around.
A set-piece taker, a favourite at Motherwell who put up good numbers and came through an elite youth football rearing; signs were encouraging and whispers from around pre-season training suggested something to look out for. In a 70-minute outing at the outset of their friendly run-out with Stoke City in Vienna, he played many of the right notes.
When players were asked this week of their dream festival line-ups for a club social media hit, the former Motherwell man offered-up Adele, Coldplay and Justin Beiber. Thankfully, his football is more distinguished than his taste in music and if his slicked-back hair and sleeve tattoos might make him look like a boyband member, a glance at his playing style suggests a bit of heavy metal. In moments, his first touch was smoother than a Barry White chorus.
He grafts. A period of the first quarter saw him blitz in pressing mode, skating across an oily playing surface to recover the ball and force Stoke into possession errors with those around him. Playing as the most advanced midfielder, he got close to Jamal Lowe when possible and drifted over to join in with a Barry-Lowe-Bannan trio that appears to have sparked an interesting understanding down the left.
A later passage saw him use his body intelligently to win foul after foul, first drawing Svante Ingelsson into an over-commitment before doing it twice more within 90 seconds or so. The two players are very different but it was a skill the Swede used to great effect in his time at Hillsborough and to have a replacement on that front - an ability getting them up the field and to re-set possession in times of strife - will be helpful. A glimpse though it merely is, you’d argue there’s more ball quality there.
Together with Louie Barry and Sil Swinkles, he provided a clear reminder that the squad quality has risen from where it was last season - even if there is a great deal of work still to be done. In what was effectively a 70-minute first half that saw the entire squad changed at half-time, the 2-0 scoreline was harsh and a result of sloppy defensive errors. The balance of play was even and between the boxes, Slattery and others brought danger.
When the ball sits in areas of the pitch in which their better players are housed, there seemed to be a feeling of competency and creativity that previously saw mere endeavour. Slattery’s midfield area was one.
A chance from a well-fizzed Barry cross should have tested goalkeeper Johansson and though he faded just a touch in the Viennese summer, it was a 70-minute outing that deserved a goal. The way he moved the ball, pushed Wednesday’s tempo and worked out of possession gave a whiff of a fan favourite. There’s a music to the way he plays.
It’s pre-season, it’s a 70-minute run about in front of no fans and only so much can be gleaned. You can hold the Ballon D’or for now, but Wednesday may well have found themselves a player. Just don’t ask to borrow his iPod.