Sheffield Wednesday have recently seen the benefit of having a Billy Mitchell-type player
Sheffield Wednesday would send out a bit of a statement by adding midfielder Billy Mitchell to Henrik Pedersen’s squad.
Slowly but surely, the Sheffield Wednesday jigsaw is taking shape.
After making a flurry of signings last week, Wednesdayites have been craving further updates on the transfer front this week as the weeks until the start of the 2026/27 campaign continue to tick down.
With just over three weeks to go until the Owls’ first competitive outing of the campaign - a Carabao Cup first round clash with Bolton Wanderers at Hillsborough - The Star understands that former Millwall midfielder Billy Mitchell is poised to become the club’s ninth signing of the summer.
Despite being presented with three contract offers by his boyhood Lions, Mitchell is on the cusp of swapping South East London for South Yorkshire. Barring any late hiccups, he will become the Owls’ third midfield signing of the summer, and their second arrival from Millwall, following Barry Bannan’s recent return to S6.
Following the exits of Nathaniel Chalobah, Marvelous Nakamba, Jaden Heskey and, most recently, Svante Ingelsson, Wednesday have been left with no choice but to rebuild their midfield ahead of the coming season.
Callum Slattery was their first midfield recruit, arriving on a free transfer after leaving Motherwell, while Bannan’s anticipated return was wrapped up just over a week ago. The former adds creativity and a goal threat from midfield to the team, while Bannan, who is no stranger to this part of the world, of course, adds creativity, drive and determination.
Mitchell, 25, has a different profile compared to the aforementioned duo. The Millwall academy graduate has made a name for himself by being a real workhorse in the middle of the pitch, snapping into tackles, winning the ball back, breaking up play and controlling possession with neat and tidy passing.
As his tally of one career goal shows, Mitchell is not a midfielder who is going to make box-crashing runs and chip in with somewhere between, for instance, three and eight goals a season. Instead, he will sit at the base of the engine room, break up opposition attacks, win back possession and pass the ball to those who are paid to be creative and score goals.
His role is not the most aesthetically pleasing on the eye, nor does it earn him Player of the Month awards as if they are going out of fashion, but what it does offer is a sense of security and control - and that is crucial.
For a multitude of reasons that everybody knows about, Wednesday played second fiddle to just about everyone in the Championship last season, meaning they were often overpowered by superior players and better equipped squads. They had to set up in a way that would help them avoid being taken to the cleaners most weeks.
In League One this coming season, it will be a different story; Wednesday will be expected to get on the front foot and control games. Mitchell’s passing range and ability to win the ball back in the centre of midfield will be key to that mission being fulfilled.
In Wednesday’s defence, they improved towards the end of last season when they had a player of Mitchell’s profile anchoring the midfield in the form of Nathaniel Chalobah. Despite his injury problems, the former Chelsea man, who has been training with the Owls recently since being released, helped Wednesday raise their performance levels when he was fit and available.
He enjoyed a strong finish to last term, starting five of Wednesday’s final six games. He was, for example, terrific in the Owls’ 0-0 draw away at Coventry City in April, breaking up play, providing protection for the defence and being neat and tidy on the ball when Wednesday had possession.
His end-of-season performances highlighted the value and importance of having a midfield enforcer whose primary responsibility is to win possession and provide control. Some of Wednesday's best performances last season, albeit from a limited sample size, coincided with Chalobah being available.
Mitchell was often a starter for a Millwall side that finished third in the Championship last season, frequently anchoring the midfield alongside Casper De Norre. They complemented each other, and the former played an important part in the Lions' near-miss in their pursuit of promotion to the Premier League.
After all, there is a reason why Millwall made three contract offers to Mitchell in an attempt to keep him.