Sheffield Wednesday latest on training ground and Danny Röhl with pre-season imminent
Players are scheduled to make a return to Middlewood Road this Thursday – June 26 – though The Star reported earlier this week that a delay in the completion of vast improvements to the training base and that the full scale of the facility improvements will not be complete in the immediate future. It’s understood efforts have been made to source an alternative venue for the early stages of their pre-season programme, but that as things stand a two-day testing period on Thursday and Friday will take place at the training ground with some workarounds in place.
Speculation has surrounded the future of Danny Röhl in the last months, with the German boss understood to have signalled his intention to leave the club in early April, around the time players and staff were still owed their March payments.
Amid whole new levels of off-field strife and with many first team players still unpaid their wages for May, the turbulent nature of life at Wednesday has only increased in the last weeks and with the vast majority of Röhl’s coaching staff out of contract at the end of the month and not expected to re-sign, it further paints a picture as to direction of his immediate future.
Some sources close to the football side of the club and with knowledge of the situation have indicated to The Star that they do not expect to see the 36-year-old at Middlewood Road this week, though absolute confirmation has not yet been forthcoming. It’s understood to be possible some of the soon-to-be out-of-contract coaching staff could report to S6 on Thursday.
Some sports science and medical staff are understood to be contracted beyond the end of the month and – as is routine at this stage of proceedings – are expected to take the lead on the first stages of the programme. The coaching set-up beyond these opening stages remains uncertain.
Another strand of uncertainty comes in that three Wednesday players – Barry Bannan, Callum Paterson and Akin Famewo – are yet to sign new deals despite having been offered them as per the club’s retained list. While some Championship clubs have taken the policy of not inviting those in similar positions to the early stages of their pre-season programmes, The Star understands that is not the case at S6 and that the trio will be welcome to report for business.
Friendlies at Wednesday have traditionally started in the early stages of July – the Owls stepped out at Alfreton Town on July 6 last year, at York City on July 8 in 2023 and at Alfreton on July 2 in 2023. Time is moving on and as of yet, no senior friendlies have been confirmed.
