Sheffield Wednesday will be in the market for a goal scorer once again this summer. Like so many teams, the Owls crave a clinical striker, someone who can be relied upon to take the chances in a tight Championship season. Proven goal scorers are notoriously hard to come by, particularly with the financial constraints of the club but Wednesday certainly aren't the only ones in that kind of boat.
Rumours had linked the Owls with a move for out-of-contract Hull City striker Matty Fryatt, who had a successful short spell on loan at Hillsborough halfway through the past season. However, Fryatt finished the season in good form for the Premier League side and is expected to be offered a new deal. Even if he turns that down he is likely to have a queue of potential suitors so Wednesday may have their work cut out.
Last summer Chairman Milan Mandaric stated in an interview that getting a proven goal scorer was a priority for the club. The Owls signed Atdhe Nuhiu, who had a experience at a good level in Europe but had never played for an English club. Nuhiu took time to settle in and his goal return could have been better. As the season went on his attributes and ability came to the fore and he showed his benefit to the team. However, he is not the type of player that would be classed as an out and out goal scorer and would be a more influential member of the team if he had a clinical finisher playing alongside him.
Wednesday also have Chris Maguire, Gary Madine and Caolan Lavery in their ranks.
Maguire has certainly been one of the Owls successes, particularly during the second half of last season but he appears to have become more accustomed to a wide midfield role rather than playing as a striker.
Madine recently returned from a spell in prison and time will tell if he is able to knuckle down and rebuild his career. He struggled during his first season in the Championship in 2012/13 but may have been affected by the personal problems hanging over him at that time. He proved he has ability and potential in helping the Owls to promotion from League One in 2011/12.
Lavery is young and has raw talent but may not quite be ready to be relied upon as the main goal scoring threat for a club hoping to build in the Championship and he may even benefit from having a more experienced goal scorer within the ranks at the club.