Sheffield Wednesday have confirmed in their 2019/20 retained list that Sam Hutchinson will be released at the end of his contract. The 30-year-old was exiled from the first-team earlier in the season and is one of Wednesday’s highest-earners, so it’s not a surprise that he’s being offloaded.
Hutchinson joined the Owls on a free transfer from Chelsea and has gone on to make 154 appearances in all competitions, scoring six goals and making four assists. The defensive-midfielder was a regular under Garry Monk, making 24 appearances across the board this season, but his last outing came all the way back in January.
Hutchinson hasn’t made an appearance or featured in the matchday squad since Wednesday’s FA Cup win over Queens Park Rangers on January 24, so his contract was always unlikely to be renewed beyond 2020. He earns £1.04m-a-year/£20k-a-week too, so the Owls would be killing two birds with one stone by cutting him off the wage bill.
The 30-year-old’s contract expires two days after Wednesday’s meeting with Bristol City (June 28), but it remains to be seen if he’ll make a farewell appearance. In Hutchinson’s absence, Monk has Barry Bannan, Massimo Luongo, Joey Pelupessy, Alex Hunt and Kieran Lee (until the end of the revised season) to turn to, so the Owls won’t miss him.
