The three reasons why Sheffield Wednesday’s pursuit of Conor Coventry collapsed have been revealed.
It was reported last week that Sheffield Wednesday had opened talks to sign West Ham midfielder Conor Coventry on a permanent basis.
The 23-year-old had spent the last 14 years with boyhood club West Ham, but had spent most of his career out on loan with the likes of MK Dons and Rotherham United.
However, with his contract set to expire this summer, Coventry was heavy linked with a move further down the football pyramid.
Despite looking close to signing Coventry in the January transfer window, it was only a few days later that fresh reports were claiming that Sheffield Wednesday were set to miss out on the Premier League man.
Charlton Athletic then went onto confirm the arrival of Coventry on a three-and-a-half year deal on Friday, leaving The Owls to wonder how they managed to lose out to a mid-table League One side.
The Star journalist Alex Miller has now explained why the pursuit of Coventry collapsed though, naming three ‘factors’ that contributed to the collapse.
Writing for The Star, Miller said: “It is believed there are a number of factors at play in the collapse of mutual interest between Wednesday and the Republic of Ireland under-21 midfielder, including a preference on the player’s part to stay in London, promises of more frequent playing time by Charlton and the League One club’s willingness to offer West Ham a higher sell-on percentage as part of their transfer package.”
Would Conor Coventry have joined The Owls as a regular?
It wasn’t really surprising that Conor Coventry wanted to stay in London, while Charlton Athletic could clearly provide financial promises that Sheffield Wednesday couldn’t.
But it would have been surprising if the midfielder failed to land a regular spot in The Owls’ midfield – especially given their current contract situation. Tyreeq Bakinson looks to have already made his last appearance for the club, Jeff Hendrick is on loan, Momo Diaby may not sign permanently, while George Byers, Will Vaulks and Barry Bannan are all out of contract in the summer.
While some of those players will definitely remain at Hillsborough, Coventry would have every opportunity to make himself an important player under Danny Rohl, especially given his young age in comparison to the rest of The Owls’ midfield.