Journalist Dom Howson believes a certain Sheffield Wednesday summer signing is yet to live up to the hype.
Sheffield Wednesday signed nine new players during the summer transfer window, setting themselves up for what many thought would be a whirlwind start to the new season.
And after a resounding win over Plymouth Argyle on the opening day of the season, those expectations looked to have been fulfilled.
Since, Wednesday are winless. The Owls lost 2-1 vs Luton Town in their last outing and currently sit in 21st place of the Championship table.
Danny Rohl’s side are back at Hillsborough this weekend where they welcome league leaders West Brom for what should be another exciting, albeit challenging game.
Many players have under-performed this season; fans were critical of Barry Bannan earlier this month, whilst Josh Windass has been a figure of scrutiny as well.
And marquee summer signing Ike Ugbo is another who could quickly come under the spotlight, but for the wrong reasons.
- READ MORE: Finance expert discusses possible Sheffield Wednesday takeover after Dejphon Chansiri reveal
Dom Howson verdict on Ike Ugbo at Sheffield Wednesday
Sheffield Wednesday signed Ugbo for £3million during the summer transfer window, having worked on a deal to sign the Canadian from Troye for weeks.
He scored eight in 17 Championship outings for the Owls during the second half of last season. But he’s yet to score in five Championship appearances this time round.
Ugbo is at risk of becoming a flop for Wednesday. And journalist Dom Howson believes that the club needs to start seeing some return soon on their investment in Ugbo.
Howson posted on X:
How Danny Rohl can get Ike Ugbo firing again
Ugbo was at his best last season when he had the ball close to the goal, either with his back to goal or not.
He proved himself to be a very neat finisher from close range, and a real poacher-type striker. But Wednesday haven’t been able to get him in that position all that often this season.
He’s had chances, though. Ugbo seems to be losing confidence with every league game without a goal, whilst the team in general is surely losing confidence amid this poor run of form.
For Rohl, returning to the ways of last season might get Ugbo firing. He needs his wingers to produce more end product on the pitch and to simply create more opportunities.
Like Howson says, Ugbo has been poor so far, and having spent so much money on him, there’s pressure on Ugbo to deliver.