Why Lewis Wing was left out of Sheffield Wednesday squad amid Middlesbrough recall rumours

But it seems the on-loan Middlesbrough midfielder will get plenty of opportunity to turn things around after repeat assurances by Owls boss Darren Moore that he will be staying put at Hillsborough despite continued rumours around a possible Teesside recall.

Wing was left out of the matchday squad altogether for Wednesday’s 1-0 win against Ipswich Town over the weekend, the third consecutive match he’s sat out.

Speaking to The Star after the match, Moore explained Wing’s absence was purely logistical.

“Lewis was only out of the squad today because we had five loan players in,” he said. “We had Bailey, we had the two centre-backs, Kamberi and Tyreece. So we couldn’t put him in.

“That’s the only reason he wasn’t in. I’ve got to manage that. With Greggers being out, I had to put Tyreece in there for an extra striker.

“I was looking at Josh’s situation, getting to 70 minutes, thinking about Kamberi, could he do 90 minutes? So we wanted to have a couple of strikers on the bench.”

Late last month Boro boss Chris Wilder said he would have to recall Wing to fulfil a fixture against Sheffield United amid a Covid outbreak at the club, though that notion was quickly quashed when the fixture was postponed.

Dennis Adeniran confirmed on Saturday evening that his hamstring injury could rule him out for the rest of the season and though the Owls boss intimated there might be thought given to bringing a new midfielder in before Monday’s deadline, it’s clear he feels the Middlesbrough man has a role to play.

“He’s desperate to play,” Moore said on the 26-year-old. “With the volume of games this month there’s a big opportunity for him to come in because of the level of games.

“That’s where he’s at. Lewis has been committed to Wednesday since he’s come here. His work rate is tireless. He wants to get it.

“I’ve told him that with all these games, he has to keep where he is, to be consistent with it.

“You know what football is like, one minute you’re not in it and the next minute it changes and you’re in. He has to be ready for that.”