Key reasons behind Charlton Athletic beating Sheffield Wednesday to West Ham agreement revealed | OneFootball

It previously looked as though Sheffield Wednesday were going to get a deal over the line for Conor Coventry.

This would have been the continuation of a productive month for the Owls thus far, with James Beadle leaving Oxford United to join on loan earlier this month as a goalkeeping alternative for Danny Rohl.

And Ike Ugbo also joined as a useful forward option for the Championship side.

But unfortunately for them, they were beaten in the race for Coventry, with League One outfit Charlton Athletic swooping in to sign the midfielder on a three-and-a-half year contract after concluding successful negotiations with West Ham United.

Considering the Addicks are in a lower division and have little chance of winning promotion considering the gap between themselves at the top six, Wednesday will be extremely disappointed not to have secured Coventry's signature, but key reasons behind his move to The Valley have now emerged.

Key reasons behind Charlton Athletic beating Sheffield Wednesday to Conor Coventry signing

The Sheffield Star believes Coventry was guaranteed more game time at The Valley than at Hillsborough, which is one reason why he remained in the English capital.

The player rather than make the move to South Yorkshire, with Coventry settled in the capital.

He may have gone out on loan to different clubs across the country during his professional career - but he was born in London and has spent much of his life there.

These two factors are seemingly player-related - but West Ham also had a say - with Charlton's willingness to offer the Irons a higher sell-on percentage in any future sale working in the Addicks' favour too.

Rohl will be extremely disappointed about missing out on one of his targets - but he took a relaxed view as he spoke to the Sheffield Star.

He said: "I think it was a decision from everybody at the end. It happens in football, it is the market and it can be like this.

"You think you are really close but then something happens.

"It is normal and we look forward to the next one."

Conor Coventry has made the right decision on his future

A move to Hillsborough would have given him the opportunity to settle down in the second tier.

However, he is probably going to play more at The Valley and he will only improve if he's playing regularly.

Rohl is a very talented coach and someone Coventry would have thrived under - but the midfielder may have become very frustrated if he hadn't won much game time in South Yorkshire.

A loan exit from Hillsborough could have been sanctioned - but he has already made more than enough temporary moves during his career and needs to settle down somewhere now.

After finding a permanent destination, it wouldn't be a surprise to see him take his game to a new level, with the player now settled in one place and knowing what his short-term future will be.