Journalist Dom Howson has hailed a former Sheffield Wednesday star as the ‘best’ the club has ever had in his position.
Sheffield Wednesday have had some exceptional players over the last decade, with a very memorable squad helping them reach the Championship play-offs in consecutive seasons between 2015 and 2017.
Fernando Forestieri finished as the Owls’ top scorer across both seasons, while the likes of Barry Bannan and Ross Wallace acted as very important leaders in the squad.
Their failure to reach the Premier League meant that a number of star players never really got a proper chance to make their mark on the top flight.
While some players eventually left Hillsborough, one who stuck around for another few years and established himself as a fan favourite was Kieren Westwood.
Kieren Westwood joined Sheffield Wednesday from Sunderland in 2014 and quickly became their first choice goalkeeper, being named in the 2014-15 Championship Team of the Year.
The shot-stopper is one of only three players to win the Owls’ Player of the Year more than once, picking up the award in the 2014-15 and 2016-17 seasons. The other two players were Eric Potts and Barry Bannan.
After making 199 appearances for the Owls, Westwood was released in 2021 and went onto join QPR. The 39-year-old now plays in League Two with Crewe Alexandra, though is yet to make his debut.
The best Sheffield Wednesday has ever had
Three years on from his exit, journalist Dom Howson has heaped praise on the Wednesday hero.
Writing on X, he said: “Hands down the best goalkeeper I’ve seen play for #SWFC in all my years of following the club (Saw bits of Pressman but he was a little bit before my time). KW saved SWFC so many points with his shot-stopping ability. Didn’t deserve to finish on the losing side at Wembley.”
Westwood made 19 appearances in the top flight with Sunderland, but failed to establish himself as a regular on Wearside.
Kieren Westwood deserved a promotion
His superb heroics at Hillsborough were certainly deserving of a place in the Premier League, but his team failed to help him reach the heights on two occasions.
The ‘keeper’s exit has left the Owls struggling to replace such an exceptional shot-stopper.
The club have since had Bailey Peacock-Farrell, Joe Wildsmith, Cameron Dawson, David Stockdale, Devis Vasquez, James Beadle and Pierce Charles.
None have been able to live up to the standard set by their predecessor, while Westwood could have made a real positive impact on Wednesday’s chances of staying up this season.