Barnsley join Blackpool in Sheffield Wednesday transfer pursuit | OneFootball

Highlights

Barnsley have joined the race for Sheffield Wednesday midfielder George Byers, according to journalist Darren Witcoop on X.

The 27-year-old has been a man in demand this month with Barnsley's League One rivals Blackpool also keen on signing the Scotland youth international this month, according to TeamTalk.

But the Tykes, who currently find themselves in fifth place in the League One table, have joined the race for Byers as they look to return to the Championship after relegation in 2022.

Byers was part of the Sheffield Wednesday squad that won promotion from League One last season and has experience of playing both Championship and League One football, making him an attractive signing for any side in the upper echelons of the League One table.

Barnsley's interest in George Byers

With Byers in the last six months of his contract at Hillsborough, Sheffield Wednesday are listening to offers for the 27-year-old.

The midfielder has been a regular at Championship level this season, so it would be a real coup for Barnsley or any other League One side if they were to get his signature over the line this month.

Byers has played 22 league games for the Owls this season, starting 17 of them, registering one goal and one assist. However, the ex-Swansea man hasn't featured for the club since the 29th December, perhaps indicating that he has no future at the club.

Since joining the club in the summer of 2021, Byers has gone onto make 78 appearances in total for Wednesday, registering 14 goals and six assists despite having struggled with injuries.

He's a popular player at Hillsborough and the Wednesday faithful will be disappointed to see him leave, but will understand why it's necessary given his contractual situation.

George Byers would be a very good signing for Barnsley

Anybody that has been a regular starter at Championship level is always going to be a good signing for a League One club and that should be the case with Byers.

The midfielder is a talented player, but his biggest downfall in recent seasons has been struggles with injuries. He missed the last few months of Wednesday's promotion-winning campaign last season with a hamstring injury, meaning he didn't feature in their play-off final win over Barnsley.

However, Byers has remained fit this season and will be looking to play as much football as possible between now and the end of the season.

The 27-year-old is a classy operator at League One level and has shown that during his two seasons in the division with Wednesday.

In 2021/22, Byers scored six goals and registered two assists in just 21 appearances, while he scored six times and registered three assists in 24 appearances last season.

If the Tykes could get the signing of Byers over the line, it would be a huge boost to their promotion hopes and would be a real statement of intent to their promotion rivals.

Wednesday set to reinvest this month

With Byers out of contract in the summer, Danny Röhl's side are willing to cash in on the player this month providing the German manager is allowed to reinvest the funds into new signings.

The departure of Byers would free up space for a new midfield signing, but time is running out with less than two days of the window remaining.

Things need to move fast for Wednesday if they're to get what they wanted from the window and Barnsley's interest in Byers may help to speed things up.