Sheffield Wednesday should rival Burnley for midfielder after Southampton blow | OneFootball

Sheffield Wednesday should join Burnley in the race for midfielder Stuart Armstrong after Shea Charles was recalled by Southampton.

It has been a positive season for Sheffield Wednesday in the Championship, but they are facing a crucial few weeks as the January transfer deadline looms.

After narrowly avoiding relegation last season, Wednesday have made significant progress this campaign under manager Danny Rohl, and they currently sit 10th in the table, just four points from the play-off places.

However, it has been a turbulent few weeks off the pitch at Hillsborough, and the first indication of problems behind the scenes came last month when Rohl hinted at a breakdown in communication between himself and owner Dejphon Chansiri.

That was confirmed by Chansiri at last week's fan forum when he revealed that he has not spoken to Rohl since December, and he insisted he would not initiate a conversation with the manager, stating that if the German wants to sign new players, "he needs to come to me and tell me".

Rohl confirmed after the 3-0 defeat at Leeds United on Sunday that he was planning to hold transfer talks with Chansiri in the coming days, and with the closure of the window fast approaching, the pair need to end their standoff quickly in order to enable the Owls to bring in reinforcements.

Shea Charles recall is devastating for Sheffield Wednesday

Wednesday supporters have long felt that if they are to achieve a surprise play-off finish this season, they will need to add extra quality to the squad in January, but that has become particularly important after midfielder Shea Charles was recalled from his loan spell at Hillsborough by parent club Southampton.

Charles joined the Owls on loan in August, and he has starred for Rohl's side this season, scoring one goal and providing four assists in 25 appearances in all competitions.

However, those statistics alone do not tell the story of just how important Charles has been for Wednesday, and there is a strong argument to be made that he has been their best player so far this campaign.

Charles' recall was sensationally revealed by Chansiri right at the end of the aforementioned fan forum, and he will make his final appearance for the Owls in their home game against Bristol City on Wednesday night, with Rohl admitting he was not optimistic about the chances of bringing the 21-year-old back to the club.

If Charles does not return, Wednesday will be left with Nathaniel Chalobah, Svante Ingelsson and Barry Bannan as their only central midfield options, which is certainly not sufficient depth for a team chasing the top six, and they will need to urgently enter the transfer market.

Stuart Armstrong deal could ease Shea Charles blow for Sheffield Wednesday

Given the recent tensions between Rohl and Chansiri, it seems unlikely that Wednesday will be spending big in the latter stages of the January transfer window, but one player who could be a realistic target for them is Vancouver Whitecaps midfielder Stuart Armstrong.

After being released by Southampton in the summer following a six-year spell at St Mary's, Armstrong had a trial at Premier League side Brentford, but after failing to secure a deal with Thomas Frank's side, he made a surprise move to Canada in September.

Armstrong has scored two goals and provided two assists in 11 appearances for Vancouver Whitecaps so far, but just over four months after joining the club, journalist Alan Nixon claims that the 32-year-old is "open to a return to English football".

The former Celtic man is believed to be on the radar of a number of Championship clubs, including automatic promotion hopefuls Burnley, and the Owls should consider joining the race for his signature.

While Armstrong is more of an attack-minded midfielder than Charles, he is capable of playing in a deeper role, as he proved many times for Southampton in their promotion-winning campaign last season, and that versatility could make him an incredibly useful asset for Rohl to have at his disposal.

Having scored six goals and registered seven assists in 45 games for the Saints last season, there is no doubt that Armstrong is a classy operator at Championship level, and while a player of his quality may have been out of reach for Wednesday in the summer, he could now be tempted to make the move to Hillsborough with the club in play-off contention.

Given their lofty position in the table, Burnley may be a more attractive proposition for Armstrong, but the Clarets have recently added Jonjo Shelvey to their already lengthy list of central midfielders, raising question marks about how much game time he would receive at Turf Moor.

Armstrong has also previously worked with Rohl during his time as Ralph Hasenhuttl's assistant at Southampton, so that could give the Owls a potential advantage in the battle for the Scotland international, and his arrival could certainly help to mitigate the impact of Charles' departure.