Sheffield Wednesday: Pundit issues Barry Bannan, Danny Rohl "going to come unstuck" claim | OneFootball

Carlton Palmer spoke to Football League World to discuss Barry Bannan's future at Sheffield Wednesday

Ex-Sheffield Wednesday midfielder Carlton Palmer believes that Danny Rohl will have to change his system permanently if he is to get the best out of Barry Bannan this season.

Rohl has opted for attacking line-ups so far for most of this season, but it's left the Owls open at the back, and Palmer believes the current set-up is doing Bannan no favours in terms of getting the best out of him.

The 34-year-old signed a one-year contract extension at Hillsborough in the summer, and he's regarded as an Owls legend, but it remains to be seen whether he'll be at the club next season.

Bannan scored an impressive goal against QPR on Saturday, but it wasn't enough to seal all three points for his side, with the Hoops stealing a late point at Hillsborough through Alfie Lloyd following a mammoth goalmouth scramble.

Former Sheffield Wednesday midfielder Palmer believes that Rohl needs to change the system to make the Owls harder to beat, which would benefit Bannan's game, and has compared the situation to his time as a player at Southampton.

Rohl did in-fact change to a back three against QPR, utilising wing-backs and a double pivot of Shea Charles and Bannan, and it almost worked out in the end, and the German has been backed to keep that way of playing to get the best out of the Scottish playmaker.

Speaking exclusively to Football League World, Palmer said: “It’s not been the best start for Sheffield Wednesday but that being said, given the euphoria and the way they finished last year, everybody had high hopes.

“But you don’t go from just about staying up in the Championship to being in the play-offs and going up to get promotion. There’s a lot of work to do and Danny Rohl has brought in a lot of players.

"Barry Bannan signed a one-year deal, and everybody is saying that he hasn’t started the season very well, but at the end of the day it’s difficult with the way that Sheffield Wednesday have set up - it’s too open.

"They need to be a bit more solid, a bit like we did at Southampton with Matt Le Tissier. We played him further forward because he’s got that creativity and what he lacked in legs he could give us with his range of passing, free-kicks, corners and his overall vision, and I think that’s the same with Barry Bannan.

“I think in the way that Sheffield Wednesday are playing in the Championship, they want to go and press teams, and they’re going to come unstuck.

“Barry signed a one-year deal, but I don’t think Sheffield Wednesday will do anything until they know how this season is going to unfold.

“I don’t believe that under Danny Rohl this is going to be a problem for Sheffield Wednesday, and I don’t envisage them getting relegated, but there’s just one or two things that they need to sort out now, and get back to making themselves hard to beat.

“That’s first and foremost in any game. Don’t get beat and then that gives you a platform to go forward.

“That was the platform that kept them in the league last season, so you can’t single out footballers because Bannan is an exceptional footballer and has done very well for Sheffield Wednesday, but the system’s not helping them, and I’m sure that Rohl will change that to make it more solid for the team.”

Of course, it's early days yet and no contract decision will be made until towards the end of the season when the club have clarity on what division they'll be playing in next season, but the Hillsborough faithful would love to see Bannan remain at the club.

The Scottish international has become a club legend since joining from Crystal Palace in 2015, and moments like Saturday's goal against QPR showed that he's still capable of moments of magic despite his age.

The 34-year-old is still a capable Championship player, despite not having the best of starts to the season, but as Palmer alluded to, that's in some part down to the way they've set up.

It's been a difficult start to the season for the Owls, but you feel as if things will click soon for both Bannan and Rohl, and it's not quite panic stations yet.

A new deal would see Bannan mark a decade at the club after joining in August 2015, and he'll be looking to earn a contract extension in the coming months.