Last week, Sheffield Wednesday’s first team refused to play a friendly match against Burnley. The reason? The club had failed to paid them. This was the third month in a row that the club had not paid their players or staff on time. The players took a stand.
What has happened for a team that finished mid-table in the English Championship last season to, all of a sudden, find themselves favourites for relegation?
Sheffield Wednesday are one of England’s most successful football teams, with four league titles, three FA Cups, one League Cup, and one Community Shield.
Matchday one of the English Championship kicks off this weekend, with Wednesday due to travel to the King Power Stadium to face Leicester on Sunday. Players have promised to fulfil this fixture but the future is unclear.
Leicester will be hoping to get themselves back into the Premier League. It could be a demolition job on Sunday.
This summer was the spark but the problems have been building at Hillsborough for years. After the season ended, the club could not afford to keep most of their talent. Josh Windass, Callum Paterson, and Michael Smith, their top goalscorers, have departed from the club on free transfers. The club is currently under a transfer embargo until 2027, making it very difficult for the club to replace the approximately thirteen departing players.
Head coach Danny Röhl departed from the club, and their prized winger Djeidi Gassama, was sold to Rangers for a measly £2.2m to cover June’s salary costs, well after they were due.
Sunday’s game will most likely be a demolition job by Leicester, which may be the straw that breaks the camel’s back. Many fans blame the current owner of Sheffield Wednesday, Dejphon Chansiri, for their financial woes. The fans are planning a protest against Chansiri’s reign over their club, and it’s not the first time this will happen. They feel that their club is being ‘held hostage’ by Dejphon Chansiri.
Thai businessman Dejphon Chansiri took over as owner in 2014 after purchasing the club for £37.5m. While initially things were looking good for the club, aiming to reach the English Premier League once again, they fell short due to injuries and poor results. Eventually, after many managers failed to turn the team around throughout the next few years, Wednesday found themselves relegated to League One. Wednesday have only recently come back to the Championship.
Bookies have priced Sheffield Wednesday at 3–10 odds to be relegated from the Championship this season. Survival is currently their main goal.
