Sheffield Wednesday have had a poor start to the 2024/25 Championship season.
After saving Sheffield Wednesday from relegation to League One last season, there was a lot of expectation surrounding Danny Rohl going into the current campaign.
The Yorkshire outfit had a productive summer transfer window and it looked as though they were set to avoid any sort of relegation scrap this time around.
Heading into the season, Sheffield Wednesday were predicted to secure a top-half finish by journalist Alex Miller.
Six games into 2024/25 though, and things have not gone to plan at Hillsborough.
Sheffield Wednesday beat Plymouth Argyle 4-0 on the opening weekend but it has all been downhill from there.
The Owls have slipped down to 22nd in the table after losing their last five league meetings, the latest of which saw them beaten 2-1 by Luton Town.
| Position | Team | Played MP | Won W | Drawn D | Lost L | For GF | Against GA | Diff GD | Points Pts |
| 20 |  PlymouthPlymouth | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 10 | -5 | 5 |
| 21 |  PrestonPreston | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 9 | -6 | 5 |
| 22 |  Sheffield WednesdaySheffield Wednesday | 6 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 6 | 12 | -6 | 4 |
| 23 |  PortsmouthPortsmouth | 6 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 7 | 13 | -6 | 3 |
A tough run of Championship fixtures now awaits Rohl and his men, with a meeting against West Bromwich Albion up next.
Opta predict Sheffield Wednesday 2024/25 Championship finish
A sixth defeat on the spin is looking likely for Wednesday this weekend, with West Brom top of the division and yet to lose a game this season.
Should they indeed lose, Rohl’s men could, in theory, end the weekend bottom of the Championship.
So, despite all the early-season optimism, it does indeed look as though a battle for survival is now on the cards once more.
Dom Howson predicted a relegation battle for Sheffield Wednesday when speaking on the Football Heaven podcast this week.
And now, Opta have released an updated predicted table for the 2024/25 Championship season and it’s not great news for Wednesday.
Though they are backed to avoid relegation, Opta have Sheffield Wednesday down to finish 21st in the Championship with 53.28 points, just three points above 22nd-place Portsmouth.
How Danny Rohl can avoid another relegation battle with Sheffield Wednesday
While Wednesday are predicted to stay up, Rohl is no doubt keen to avoid a repeat of 2023/24 when his team’s safety was not confirmed until the final day.
One of the easiest ways the Owls can boost their survival chances is by spending big in the January transfer window.
Rohl already has transfer plans in mind for Sheffield Wednesday, confirming last month he has a clear idea over what he wants to do in the next two windows.
But new additions can, of course, not arrive at the club for several months, meaning Rohl will need to get more out of his current first-team squad if he is to keep Wednesday up this season.
Sheffield Wednesday paid £3m for Ike Ugbo over the summer but the player has since flopped in the current campaign, failing to find the target on a single occasion.
The 26-year-old is one of a number of stars greatly underperforming this term and Rohl needs to figure out a way for that to change sooner rather than later.