Sheffield Wednesday should already be thrashing out fresh Brighton transfer agreement
Sheffield Wednesday should try to get James Beadle on loan again next season after his impressive performances this season.
Sheffield Wednesday are once again fighting for relegation in their first season back in the Championship following a two-year absence.
The Owls are currently lying in 23rd place and are only one point away from safety in the second division of English football.
A disastrous start under Xisco Munoz left them with only two points from their first 10 games, but Danny Rohl replaced him in October and has given them a fighting chance of surviving relegation with eight games remaining.
A problem position at the start of the season was in-between the sticks, but James Beadle’s January signing appears to have remedied those difficulties.
Sheffield Wednesday’s goalkeeping situation was a serious issue.
Munoz signed 12 new players before the start of the season, overhauling the roster that was promoted the previous season.
Last season, Wednesday alternated between Cameron Dawson and David Stockdale as goalkeepers, with both appearing in more than 20 league games.
Munoz did, however, bring in his own goalkeeper, Devis Vasquez, who signed on loan from AC Milan.
After his arrival, he started every league game for Munoz, but he only kept one clean sheet in nine games, conceding 16 goals.
Vasquez had a save rate of 59%, ranking him in the worst 15% of the division’s keepers, and when Rohl took over, Vasquez would not play again, with the German choosing for Dawson.
He did not fare much better, keeping only four clean sheets in 18 games, although Vasquez’s loan was ended in January, leaving Dawson as the Owls’ sole senior goalkeeper.
Sheffield Wednesday made an excellent commercial decision by signing James Beadle.
With Vasquez’s loan coming to an end, Wednesday signed James Beadle on loan from Brighton.
He had spent the first half of the season on loan at Oxford United, where he preserved seven clean sheets in 25 games, and the kid had impressed with his passing, which is ideal for Rohl’s style of play.
So far, the 19-year-old has handled the transition to the Championship admirably, keeping five clean sheets in 11 appearances.
England has noticed the 19-year-old’s performances by calling him up to the under-20 squad for this international break.
Sheffield Wednesday should speak to Brighton about extending James Beadle’s loan. With Beadle proving his worth for Wednesday, the Owls should aim to bring him back on loan next season, regardless of the level they play in.
He still has a lot to learn at the age of 19, but he may gain more from the stability of being at one club and studying if he does not get into Brighton’s first squad any time soon.
He went from spending the second part of last season with Crewe Alexandra in League Two to the first half of this season with Oxford in League One, and now Wednesday in the Championship.
While the promotion to the next league is beneficial to his growth, playing for three different clubs in three different regions of the country in the last 18 months may also be detrimental.
He is also not ready for the Brighton first team yet, having just played half a season in the Championship; he requires more first-team games at a high level before he can start for them.
Rohl now has a goalie he can trust, Wednesday must do everything they can to make
I’m sure he’ll continue with them next season.
Of course, demotion to League One may not enhance Wednesday’s chances of securing an extended loan agreement, but getting in early could help them seal a deal for the 2024-25 season.
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