Football League World
·15 July 2024
Sheffield Wednesday will hope Danny Rohl factor is enough as Premier League, Championship news drops: View
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Football League World
·15 July 2024
Sheffield Wednesday will hope Danny Rohl has enough influence to encourage Ike Ugbo back to Hillsborough.
Sheffield Wednesday's remarkable turn of form in the second half of last season can be put down to several elements, but the arrival of head coach Danny Röhl was crucial.
The German was able to string multiple results together after his bedding in process, and he made some astute additions in the January window to help them achieve survival.
One of these players was Ike Ugbo, who was superb for the Owls and displayed why he was held in such high regard at Chelsea for a number of years before leaving eventually in 2021.
It is fair to say, that without Ugbo's seven goals in 18 games, Wednesday would have been relegated, so it is no surprise to see them return to sign him permanently this summer.
A key factor behind securing this deal could be Röhl, who nurtured the striker brilliantly in the second half of last season. Time will tell as to whether they can sign him, but their head coach should place them in pole position.
Wednesday's German head coach is very much the archetypal modern manager, with his influence on the squad last year clear.
Speaking to the Athletic, Röhl highlighted his strong man-management skills that helped keep the Owls afloat: “I showed a video that was four or five minutes that was about what it means to be successful, and then I showed the players the last 16 matches.
“Then we had a very emotional conversation with the players. Some players were really touched in this meeting, but then we looked forward. It was not easy to lift other guys up, but we did it as a team.”
Clearly, Röhl’s emotional and motivational leadership style, reminiscent of his German compatriot Jürgen Klopp, could be a decisive factor in convincing Ugbo to join Sheffield Wednesday permanently.
The Canadian international has been linked with a return for most of the summer, but on Thursday it was confirmed by Mike McGrath that they have now submitted a bid.
Whilst the figure is unclear, his parent club Troyes will be wary that there are other Championship and Premier League clubs circling, so they may try to hold out for further money.
With this in mind, Wednesday fans will have to hope that their bid is worthy of acceptance. If it is, then Röhl can begin to weave his magic and, based on his exploits with Josh Windass and Max Lowe, he would likely have enough pulling power to sign the 25-year-old.
If the striker needs any convincing of Röhl's ambitions for the season, then he just needs to listen to his former teammate Windass and the newly signed Lowe.
Both players have stated the importance of the head coach in them signing new deals, with Windass' a particularly telling interview.
"Since I've been here I feel like the fans have enjoyed watching me play, I've loved playing here, and now I've probably got the best manager I've ever had, so to leave would have been a big mistake on my part, I think."
Speaking about their ambitions the forward added: "With this manager, our intention is to finish as high in the league as possible. That should be the mentality we all have, I've always had that mentality even when we've been down the bottom of the league, it's obviously not been a happy place to be when you're down the bottom.
These words are only furthered by Lowe, who chose to sign for his former club's rivals over Middlesbrough, due to the influence of Danny Röhl.
This may not prove a simple deal for Wednesday, but if they can sort out a suitable financial package for the Canadian, then they needn't worry about personal terms.
The 25-year-old would be a stellar signing for and could begin to answer questions about where goals will come from next season.