The Owls are close to making their ninth summer signing

Midfielder Billy Mitchell is set to become Sheffield Wednesday’s ninth summer signing.

As exclusively revealed by The Star, the 25-year-old is set to complete a move to Hillsborough on a free transfer from Millwall, where he has spent his entire career. He made 30 appearances last season as Alex Neil’s men finished in the Championship play-offs but lost out to eventual winners Hull City.

The holding midfielder has reportedly rejected three contract offers from his boyhood club after graduating through the academy. He is now closing in on a fresh start in the blue and white of Wednesday and it is hoped he will be able to join the squad in Hungary and Vienna for the pre-season training camp next week.

WHAT TYPE OF PLAYER IS HE?

Scouting tools show Mitchell’s strength to be tackling, interceptions, passing and dribbling, ranking very highly for all of these. His other qualities include cross completion, defensive actions and acceleration with the ball.

Owls fans should probably not expect too many goals or assists from him - that is just not his game - or a least it was not his role at Millwall, where he netted just once in 184 Championship outings. Mitchell is more likely to be seen breaking up play and shielding the defence, his stats showing that touches in the opposition penalty area are rare for him.

WHAT HAS BEEN SAID ABOUT HIS MILLWALL CONTRACT?

Earlier this month, Millwall boss Neil told NewsAtDen: “The difficulty we’ve had with Bill was that there was a contract on the table for Bill for quite a while. I spoke to Billy at length about the fact that the contract’s there. We wanted Billy to sign it. I always think you never say never. At the moment, Billy’s contract’s running down. Once you get to the end of June, then July kicks in for any player who’s out of contract unless they’ve signed somewhere else. It’s a fluid situation. But what I will say is that the central midfield area is not a priority for us at the moment, because we’ve signed two players for there already. “

WHAT’S HE LIKE OFF THE PITCH?

Mitchell won the 2022 PFA Player in the Community Award for the Sky Bet Championship. He was praised for his maturity and professionalism when connecting with people from all ages and backgrounds.

Gary Rowett, one of his former Millwall managers, said: “For such a young player, Billy has an incredibly professional approach to everything he does around being a footballer. I’ve scarcely come across a player with work ethic like his and very clearly those endeavours stretch beyond what happens on the pitch into far more life-changing matters. Its community work is something that the football club takes incredibly seriously, and Billy is a shining example of the impact that it can make. He is a great ambassador for Millwall, for the community and his family, and is a true credit to himself.”