One Sheffield Wednesday star has stood out for his recent performances.
Sheffield Wednesday made 12 new signings in the summer transfer window, with a majority of them so far proving to be particularly underwhelming.
Devis Vasquez and John Buckley ended their loan spells early, Juan Delgado and Momo Diaby both struggled with long-term injuries, while Ashley Fletcher, Jeff Hendrick, Bambo Diaby and Reece James have all failed to reach expectations.
Top scorer Anthony Musaba and ‘colossal‘ Di’Shon Bernard have been successes, while there was even more pressure on the only two players that the Owls paid money for in Djeidi Gassama and Pol Valentin.
The pair joined from Paris Saint-Germain and Sporting Gijon respectively, for a combined fee of £1.1 million.
With Sheffield Wednesday’s recent financial issues, it was a lot of money to be taking risks with, and the first half of the campaign had suggested that Pol Valentin wasn’t living up to his £250,000 price tag.
However, the defender looks to have turned things around since the turn of the year and has been a real attacking asset to Danny Rohl in recent weeks.
Journalist Joe Crann took to X to share an image of Valentin’s average position against Bristol City, with the caption: “Pol Valentin’s average position against Bristol City says a lot about the role he was asked to play… A real attacking outlet for #SWFC.”
The transformation of Pol Valentin
Pol Valentin was brought in by his fellow Spaniard Xisco Munoz last summer, but managed only one minute of league action in his first six games at the club.
The full-back went onto earn himself a regular place in the starting line-up but was far from the quality needed in the second tier, having been labelled ‘calamitous’ in the defeat to Plymouth in October.
Valentin then spent a brief amount of time out of the squad completely, but was brought back in before Christmas and has gone onto develop and grow into a very important player.
The 27-year-old has now played the full 90 minutes in six of the Owls’ last seven games and has been key in both defence and on the attack, playing a key role in the two clean sheets they have picked up in the last four outings.
Valentin has now made the fifth most tackles in the squad (40) and completed the third most dribbles (32), while the weekend’s win over Bristol City saw him come close to netting his first goal since joining the club.
The defender has received plenty of praise recently and has been tipped to become a ‘fan favourite’ following his recent displays, while we could well see him continue to improve in the final months of the season.
He has definitely chosen the perfect time to become so important, with the club steering themselves in the right direction to safety.