Sam Winnall could be on his way out of Sheffield Wednesday as his contract is up this summer and he’s no closer to putting pen to paper on an extension.
Morgan Fox, Kieran Lee, Joey Pelupessy, Sam Hutchinson, Winnall, Atdhe Nuhiu, Fernando Forestieri, Fraser Preston, Jack Stobbs and Steven Fletcher are out of contract in the coming months, but Dom Howson of Yorkshire Live said only Fox and Fletcher have been offered new deals.
So, why has Winnall been overlooked?
The 29-year-old joined Wednesday from Barnsley in January 2017 and has gone on to make 43 appearances in all competitions, scoring six goals and making two assists.
As per Transfermarkt, Winnall was a regular in his debut campaign, making 15 appearances across the board, but he’s struggled for opportunities in the last three seasons – three appearances in 2017/18 (205 minutes of playing time), eight appearances in 2018/19 (208 minutes), 17 appearances in 2019/20 (737 minutes).
Not only has Winnall struggled to nail down a regular starting place, he’s been short of form – the 29-year-old has scored only two goals for Wednesday since December 2017. If Winnall is released this summer, the Owls will lose out on the £518k they paid three years ago. They’ll save money through cutting his £0.83m-a-year/£16k-a-week salary from the wage bill, however.
Garry Monk could be left with only Fletcher and Jordan Rhodes in attack next season, so Wednesday will need to strengthen in the transfer market. Vital Sheff Wed have identified Dwight Gayle (Newcastle United), Lyle Taylor (Charlton Athletic) and Sammy Ameobi (Nottingham Forest) as potential options, but it’s unknown who the Owls are after.
Nevertheless, Winnall has been out of form and out of favour at Hillsborough, so it’s no surprise his contract is being allowed to run down.
