Callum Paterson has been sidelined for the whole of 2024 at Sheffield Wednesday.
Paterson, 29, has now missed the entirety of 2024 so far after undergoing knee surgery earlier in the year.
The Scot was initially sidelined with concussion before Danny Rohl revealed that Paterson had undergone knee surgery.
But Rohl has now revealed ahead of the Championship game vs Ipswich Town this weekend that Paterson could be back sooner than expected.
Calum Paterson close to Sheffield Wednesday return
Paterson was initially ruled out until the end of April.
But speaking to the club ahead of the weekend, Rohl said that the versatile Paterson could be back by the end of this month, or the start of April.
Rohl said:
“This week is a little bit pity, he’s ill. But all in all he’s on the right way, he comes closer. At first I expected him a little bit later, in the April, and now we speak about maybe end of March, start of April.”
Paterson is now in his fourth full season with Sheffield Wednesday, but injuries have certainly hampered him across the last two seasons.
In his first two campaigns at Hillsborough, Paterson made 84 total league appearances for the Owls, but since the start of last season, Paterson has featured just 47 times in league fixtures.
Paterson return will be huge boost for Owls’ survival push
Paterson is a well-liked member of the team, and for good reason; he’s someone that will always put in the yards and always put his body on the line for the club.
His nature perhaps means that he’s more prone to injuries than other players, but there’s no doubting that his tenacity and also his versatility will be a huge plus when he eventually returns.
There’s only nine games left and Rohl won’t rush Paterson back after he underwent surgery.
But if Paterson can come back for the last five or four games then it’ll be better than not having him at all.
His ability to play in attack or in a wing-back positions makes him the ideal player to step in and cover injuries, or come off the bench later in games and make an impact wherever Rohl needs him to.
As for Sheffield Wednesday, they remain in 23rd but just one point now separates them from the drop zone, compared to what was an eight-point gap at one point last month.
Though a trip to Ipswich Town will certainly be a tricky one this weekend, with the Tractor Boys looking to return to the top two after Leeds United beat Sheffield Wednesday 2-0 last Friday to move up into 2nd.