The Stoke City striker Lee Gregory is again been linked with a move to Sheffield Wednesday – despite his affection for the Owls’ city rivals, Sheffield United.
Teamtalk claims that Wednesday are leading the chase for Gregory, who is also wanted by Middlesbrough.
The Owls were first credited with an interest in the Sheffield-born 32-year-old in the summer of 2016, when he was Millwall player (Daily Mail).
And his name has cropped up often in intervening transfer windows.
But now seems like the most logical time of any for Gregory’s Hillsborough switch to happen, with Wednesday short in his position ahead of Friday’s deadline for domestic deals.
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Gregory is also in the final 10 months of his contract at Stoke and could therefore align with the Owls’ tight budget.
Gregory in action for Stoke. (Photo by Lewis Storey/Getty Images)
Whether the lifelong Sheffield United fan would fancy it, or favour a link up with the former Blades manager Neil Warnock at Middlesbrough, is another question.
But reports that Gregory last year rejected a return to Bramall Lane (Daily Mail) – where he started out as a youth team player – suggest he is in no particular rush to head back to his hometown.
His former Millwall teammate Jed Wallace once claimed that Gregory would score 20 goals a season playing in a side like Wednesday’s, when Carlos Carvalhal was manager.
But the former Halifax Town player has only ever struck 10 in a single Championship campaign.
Gregory was progressing through the Sheffield United academy ranks when the current Wednesday coach James Beattie was a first-team player there.
