Sheffield Wednesday have a quiet goal machine on board - Devlan Moses working for more minutes
It’s perhaps a sign of the times that a young Sheffield Wednesday striker has blitzed nine goals in four under-21 matches - and its an achievement that hasn’t made much of a ripple.
Perhaps it should. While the chatter around the club focuses on US investment and EFL back-and-forth and what on earth Wednesday’s future might look like in a week or two, there’s a youngster who has wrestled his way into the conversation around first team minutes on the basis of hard work and goals.
For whatever reason, Northern Ireland youth international Devlan Moses hasn’t always been one of the names most spoken about when it comes to the carousel of youngsters lining up to take their chance for Henrik Pedersen’s first team this season. Where others featured early doors, the 20-year-old waited until Boxing Day to make his debut thanks in part to injury. With senior forwards ahead in the queue, his contribution was limited.
Goal-getting form in the last few weeks has changed that. Ike Ugbo has been left aside in squad lists thanks in part to a run of nine in four from the youngster, whose five Championship appearances to date have totalled 26 minutes. Brought on in the 80th against Ipswich Town over the weekend, his contribution is rising. It’s a run of form in front of goal the under-21s haven’t seen since Bailey Cadamarteri was thrust into the first team back in 2023. Moses has parted the ways.
So what next? Wednesday’s set-up is a hive of activity designed to improve individuals and with other youngsters having staked their first team claim, it’s over to Moses to take hold of his own hot streak and make the requisite improvements to adapt to the fire of Championship football. It’s a highly-technical division of enormous demand - and Moses is putting the work in behind the scenes to grab more chances.
Speaking to The Star, Owls boss Henrik Pedersen said: “We have ben speaking a lot with Dev about his fitness, about his number of accelerations, number of high-intensity meetings, number of sprints. He has to increase this a lot. And you also see today that there was a top centre-back he played against versus Ipswich. It's a difficult job against Ipswich.
“But you see that he needs those experiences today to get the sense that this is it, where I have to improve. And if I don't improve, then I'll not reach where I want. This is some good experience now, so he can grow from this.”