Simon Wilson gives verdict on Sheffield Wednesday squad rebuild and hints at long-term plan
Sheffield Wednesday recruited 18 players during a very busy summer transfer window.
Sporting director Simon Wilson believes Sheffield Wednesday have assembled a squad that can compete at the top of League One this season following the end of the summer transfer window.
The Owls brought a transformative summer to a close by bringing in 18 new signings, concluding with the arrival of Davis Keillor-Dunn on loan from Wrexham on Thursday. Wednesday made a last-gasp move for the former Barnsley man on deadline day, and his arrival at Hillsborough was confirmed a little under 48 hours after the window closed.
Wednesday went into the summer with the knowledge that they may have to recruit somewhere in the region of 15-20 players, all while operating under an EFL business plan that was put in place following their exit from administration earlier this year.
Considering the circumstances under which they have been operating, supporters believe the Owls’ new-look hierarchy has done a sterling job of assembling such a competitive squad for the level at which Wednesday are competing this season.
Bringing in the likes of Barry Bannan, Billy Mitchell, Mason Burstow, Louie Barry and Keillor-Dunn, to name just a few, Wednesday are now widely considered one of the favourites for promotion this term.
Reflecting on the recruitment carried out over the summer, Wilson told the Owls’ YouTube channel: “We feel like we're in a really good place. We feel like we have built a squad that certainly can compete at the top end of the league.
“We are sat here with three wins out of four. The stadium feels fantastic, the fans feel together, everyone feels together, and one thing for sure, I know we'll get better from this point between now and the end of May.
“So to have this start, I feel really optimistic about the future.”
Wednesday drafted in players with varied profiles during the summer, attempting to strike a balance between players who can have an immediate impact and those who can steadily develop with the club as it attempts to move forward over the coming years.
“That's a principle that I would always try and work to,” Wilson continued, addressing the importance of building a balanced squad. “You're always trying to work for the players for right now, for immediate performance impact, as well as having some space for some longer-term players that are going to come with you on the journey.
“Believe it or not, we don't really want to have summers like this year in, year out. That volume of churn and that volume of change of players is risky because you want that to be a bit smoother.
“So, in order to do that, ideally you would have a core of players that are contracted to the club for multiple seasons and then some others that will come in and make an impact.
“I think with the ones that we've got on longer-term contracts, with Billy Mitchell, Louie, Sil [Swinkels], Jordi [Liongola] and so on, we've got a group of players that we think can grow with the club as the club grows. We've also got players that will come in for immediate performance impact.
“And probably because of where we've been with the membership agreement, we've been inhibited from making more transfers with long-term deals for younger players. But I'm really happy with the balance that we've got. It feels just about right in terms of age profiles and also experience levels.”