Sheffield Wednesday looking to 'find solution' with Millwall - Henrik Pedersen praises exit-bound Barry Bannan
An emotional goodbye has signalled what is almost certainly the final appearance of Barry Bannan’s decade with Sheffield Wednesday - with manager Henrik Pedersen paying tribute to one of the club’s legendary figures.
The veteran Scot remains Wednesday’s most effective player and told coaches and teammates on Friday of his decision to leave the club, with Millwall long since understood to be his most likely destination. While no formal transfer bid has yet been received by Wednesday as per The Star’s latest understanding of the situation, it’s understood that Bannan, Henrik Pedersen and the club’s administrators have been in dialogue over the situation in the last couple of weeks.
There has been a verbal agreement of some sort to allow Bannan to move on on free transfer terms and though Millwall will have to raise a formal offer before any move is to be officially ratified, the expectation of all involved is that a deal will be completed in the coming days.
Speaking to The Star following an emotional send-off in which Bannan was seen crying into the away section, Pedersen said: “I can say that Barry wants to leave and of course I don’t want it to be that he has to leave, but Barry and his representatives are speaking with the club to find a solution.”
Play was halted with a couple of minutes to go as Bannan was substituted for youngster Jarvis Thornton to receive the applause of Ashton Gate. Wednesday fans sang his name throughout the match and his departure from the pitch was met with handsome applause from huge sections of the home support, who paid their own respect to one of the great Championship careers.
Pedersen, speaking in a croaky and illness-ravaged voice no doubt ill-eased by the emotion of the day, spoke heartily on scenes that told plenty about the connection shared between Sheffield Wednesday fans and their captain.
“You could tell with everything (that happened),” he said. “The Bristol fans were also good today, but our fans were amazing. They were singing for 95 minutes, the players could feel their support, but Barry especially could feel that support through 95 minutes. It was incredible and tells you everything about what Bary means for this club for 10 years. In my years he has been a fantastic captain and since the summer, how he has handled this situation, it makes him a great player and a fantastic captain.
“I said to him yesterday, we have two basic values. The human always comes first and we don’t do something to get something - we do something to give something. Barry is a great example of both; how he has been a leader and captain for us. He is a good friend of mine, of course. We will miss him, but we have big respect for his solution.”