Sheffield Wednesday manager Garry Monk confirms enquiries for Owls players

Cardiff City and Wigan Athletic are believed to have expressed an interest at the back end of the window in Wednesday striker Jordan Rhodes. It is thought Cardiff and Wigan explored the possibility of taking Rhodes on loan until the end of the season.

However, The Star understands Wednesday, who rejected a derisory loan bid from the Latics for Rhodes earlier in the January transfer window, received no tangible bid for Rhodes before Friday's 11pm cut off point.

Monk said: "There were enquiries about some of the players. I left it to the club.

"I didn't go into the ins and outs of it but the club felt the enquiries that we did have didn't suit what the club wanted."

Rhodes, a club-record £8m acquisition from Middlesbrough in February 2017, was left out of the matchday squad for the Owls' home draw with Millwall on Saturday.

The 29-year-old, a big hit during his season-long loan at Norwich City last term, has played 15 times this season.

Rhodes scored a sublime hat-trick in Wednesday's superb victory at Nottingham Forest in mid-December.

But Rhodes has been in and out of Garry Monk's starting XI since Christmas.

With Monk having strengthened the attacking options at his disposal by swooping to sign Connor Wickham and Josh Windass on loan from Crystal Palace and Wigan respectively, Rhodes appears to have been pushed further down the pecking order for a starting berth.