Sheffield Wednesday discuss return of ex-Celtic man Stuart Armstrong - EFL process remains
Sheffield Wednesday have had contact with Stuart Armstrong over a potential return to the club, The Star understands, though any true likelihood of a deal is as of yet unknown.
The Owls are hunting the market for reinforcements after two EFL registration embargoes were lifted earlier this month. A ‘fee restriction’ on any incoming business remains, with the authority’s independent Club Financial Reporting Unit (CFRU) continuing to work with the club to ascertain their ongoing cashflow forecast and design an effective business plan for squad expenditure.
Wednesday are limited to free transfers and the loan market until the summer of 2027, with the club’s recruitment arm having drawn up a longlist of potential players and work ongoing. The club is kept aware of the restrictions it is required to operate in and requires the CFRU - which was set up to work independently from the EFL - to sign-off on any incoming deals.
With Wednesday having failed to fulfil so many obligations in recent months, parties are keen to avoid any over-stretching as the Owls continues to navigate its troubling financial landscape.
Where that leaves mooted deals for targets such as Armstrong, who spent the second half of last season signed to the Owls, remains to be seen. The 51-cap Scotland international made only 11 appearances either side of a calf injury but made an impact on and off the field. The Star understands contact has been had with the 33-year-old as they search the market, but that things are not much closer as things stand. It’s believed Armstrong has wider interest and would have to take a wage cut on his previous deal to re-join the club - though his free agent status remains.
Wednesday boss Henrik Pedersen told media last week that a longlist ‘more than 60’ names had been identified as potential options. Former Leeds United skipper Liam Cooper is one free agent known to be of interest, while Manchester United loanee pair Harry Amass and Toby Collyer are admired at S6. Young Manchester City attacker Jaden Heskey is also believed to be of loan interest.
Speaking to The Star this week, Pedersen was asked whether he had been given assurances deals for experienced players would be possible and said: “I have not been given any assurance that we can, but we do everything we can to make a great project at Sheffield Wednesday.
“There is interest from many players, with the money we can pay right now and we hope it can also help that we are first of all a fantastic club and an interesting place where you can make your next step as a footballer and as a human. We hope we can get some interesting players for us.
“At the moment there are a lot of young players on the table, and there is also a lot of very experienced players on the table. We are working very, very hard everyday to find players and to get the right players. I really hope that soon we will have something.”