Barry Bannan considered major change after returning to Sheffield Wednesday | OneFootball

Barry Bannan is back at Sheffield Wednesday, but he revealed that he almost decided against wearing his iconic number 10 shirt.

A new era is underway at Sheffield Wednesday after David Storch completed his takeover of the club.

Storch's Arise Capital Consortium Partners saved Wednesday from administration when they finalised their takeover in May, and Owls supporters will be hoping that better days are ahead under their new ownership after the nightmare end to Dejphon Chansiri's tenure.

Barry Bannan makes emotional Sheffield Wednesday return after David Storch takeover

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After the mass exodus that took place as Chansiri's reign began to crumble, Wednesday had a threadbare squad as they were relegated from the Championship last season, which gave the new recruitment team plenty of work to do this summer to build a competitive team for League One.

The Owls brought in a total of 18 signings during the summer transfer window, and while many of those were new faces, three players returned to Hillsborough for a second spell — Joe Lumley, Reece James and, most notably, Barry Bannan.

Bannan previously spent 10-and-a-half years with Wednesday after initially joining on a free transfer from Crystal Palace in the summer of 2015, and he scored 37 goals and provided 75 assists in 477 games during his first stint in South Yorkshire.

However, despite frequently stating that he was keen to remain with the Owls for the rest of his career, Bannan made the decision to depart for Millwall in January, with the Scot understood to have held reservations about the proposed takeover by James Bord, who was the preferred bidder at the time.

Bannan helped the Lions to a third-placed finish in the Championship, but they missed out on promotion as they were beaten by Hull City in their play-off semi-final tie, and rumours soon began to emerge about the midfielder's future after he struggled to settle at The Den.

Less than six months after his exit, Bannan completed an emotional return to Wednesday in July as he put pen to paper on a one-year contract at the club, and he recently opened up about one big decision he had to make after his arrival.

Barry Bannan considered Sheffield Wednesday change after Hillsborough return

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For many years, Bannan wearing the number 10 shirt while pulling the strings in midfield was an iconic sight at Hillsborough, but that was not always the case.

Bannan originally wore the number 41 shirt after joining Wednesday in 2015, and he enjoyed plenty of success while donning those digits in his debut season, scoring three goals and registering two assists in 41 appearances as the Owls reached the Championship play-off final, where they were beaten 1-0 by Hull.

However, despite the painful ending to the campaign as his side fell agonisingly short of promotion to the Premier League, Bannan clearly still has fond memories of the number 41, and he recently revealed that he considered choosing that shirt number after returning to Wednesday this summer, rather than reprising his legendary number 10.

When asked if he had to fight to get his number 10 shirt back, Bannan told The Wednesday Word: "Luckily, there was no one trying to steal it.

"To be honest, I was thinking of going back to 41 because I feel that was probably one of my most happy seasons at the club.

"Obviously, we lost in the final to Hull that year, but there was a bit of me thinking, do you change?

"But I think because I've had 10 for so long and there's loads of people in Sheffield who see me, younger kids, as 10. I thought I'll just stick with it.

Barry Bannan is facing one big Sheffield Wednesday difference in second Owls spell

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Bannan eventually opted to stick with the number 10 shirt that had been synonymous with his first spell at Hillsborough after his return this summer, which will no doubt have delighted many Wednesday supporters, not least those who still proudly wear kits sporting his name.

However, while Bannan's number has not changed, the 36-year-old had to come to terms with one big difference after re-joining the Owls when manager Henrik Pedersen decided against giving him the captaincy back.

After being handed the armband by Garry Monk in the summer of 2020, Bannan remained as Wednesday skipper for the next five-and-a-half years prior to his move to Millwall in January, and many assumed he would resume that role this season.

Instead, Pedersen announced that Liam Palmer, who had taken over the captaincy after Bannan's exit, would continue those duties despite the midfielder's homecoming, which certainly raised a few eyebrows among the Owls fanbase.

However, after being named as Wednesday's vice-captain, Bannan has found himself leading the team out on a regular basis this season in Palmer's absence, and as he continues to settle back into life at Hillsborough, his brief spell at Millwall may already be a distant memory.