Sheffield Wednesday: Barry Bannan simply needs help for one clear reason, it showed v Bristol City | OneFootball

Barry Bannan was once again a standout performer for Sheffield Wednesday in the draw at Bristol City.

Sheffield Wednesday picked up a decent point at Bristol City last night, although Danny Rohl’s side were by no means at their best in an attacking sense.

It has been a mixed campaign for the Owls, who started with an outstanding 4-0 win over Plymouth Argyle at Hillsborough.

They haven’t been able to hit those heights since, apart from an impressive victory over West Brom, so they went to Ashton Gate needing a result as they look to open up a gap to the relegation zone.

Barry Bannan remains a key outlet for Sheffield Wednesday

Ultimately, the draw was an acceptable result for Wednesday, but Rohl’s side lacked any spark in the final third, which was evident as they managed just 0.23xG across the 90 minutes.

That’s not to say the attacking unit didn’t work at all, as Barry Bannan was once again impressive for the Owls.

The Scotsman created three chances in the game, which was the joint-most on the pitch along with Anis Mehmeti, and it was two more than any other Wednesday player.

Furthermore, he made 17 passes into the final third, which was the most on the pitch, and by a comfortable distance, as the next on the list was Jason Knight with 13.

So, the 34-year-old really should be excluded from criticism when it comes to discussing Wednesday’s attacking performance.

In reality, a player like Bannan should be a dream for a winger or forward player.

The technical ability of the former Aston Villa man is well-known, and that variety in his passing makes him such a joy to watch.

Whether it’s drilling the ball into the feet of a striker, spreading a ball out to a wide man or crossing into dangerous areas, Bannan does have it all technically at this level.

Part of Rohl’s success since his appointment has been because he has built the team around Bannan, but displays like last night show that more is needed around the midfielder if Wednesday are to be successful.

Sheffield Wednesday need more attacking threat

That’s not to say that the Yorkshire side don’t have quality in the final third, because that is not the case.

As mentioned, they hammered Plymouth on the opening day, and scoring three against a defensively strong West Brom side shows that there is talent in the group.

But, there’s no getting away from the fact this is a concerning trend, as Wednesday have scored just nine all season, with seven of those coming in those two games.

Therefore, they have failed to score in four of their eight games, which is just not good enough, especially when you have someone like Bannan who can pull the strings in the middle of the park.

It has been obvious for years that Bannan is a key figure for Wednesday, but there had been hope that the reliance on the left-footer would reduce this season, as Rohl brought in his own players.

Unfortunately, the draw at Bristol City was proof that Bannan remains as integral as ever, with many of his teammates not stepping up in what was a toothless Wednesday side.